CNN Gives Eliot Spitzer 8 p.m. Co-Hosting Gig

CNN has identified a replacement duo for Campbell Brown, naming former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer and syndicated conservative columnist Kathleen Parker co-hosts of a nightly 8 p.m. roundtable program to debut this fall.The as-yet untitled show promises to be a point-counterpoint affair, as longtime Democrat Spitzer will share a desk with Parker, a columnist aligned with the Washington Post Writers Group. Although not as well known as her new on-air confrere, Parker has built a strong following as a self-described “rational conservative.” Before winning the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for commentary, Parker invited the ire of GOP loyalists two years ago when she called for vice presidential candidate and former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin to drop out of the race.A self-styled crusader who went after Wall Street as New York State Attorney General (1998-2006), Spitzer’s brief reign as governor of the Empire State ended after revelations that he had been a client of a high-priced prostitution ring.In the wake of the scandal, Spitzer has been using cable news programs as a platform from which to rebuild his reputation. Widely rumored to have been in the running for his own nightly program, Spitzer has been a guest on CNN and MSNBC in recent months. CNN president Jon Klein said the pairing would give viewers a more kaleidoscopic viewpoint than can be found elsewhere on the dial. “Other cable news channels force-feed viewers one narrow, predictable point of view; in contrast, CNN will be offering a lively roundup of all the best ideas––presented by two of the most intelligent and outspoken figures in the country,” said Klein, by way of announcing the move. “Eliot and Kathleen are beholden to no vested interest––in fact, quite the opposite: they are renowned for taking on the most powerful targets and most important causes.” Parker will continue writing her column, which is distributed in some 400 national newspapers twice each week.“As a veteran print journalist, I am appropriately respectful of the challenges posed by the medium,” said Parker. “But I’m thrilled by the opportunity to discuss the issues that matter to me—and that aren’t heard often enough on television—in a conversation with one of the nation’s most brilliant, fearless and original thinkers. With Eliot Spitzer as my co-host, Wall Street and Main Street will finally meet. It can’t possibly be boring.”Spitzer made a similar show of enthusiasm for his new co-worker, saying that he looked forward to working alongside Parker “in a discussion that will inform, challenge, and entertain.”Spitzer and Parker will go head-to-head with Fox News Channel’s The O’Reilly Factor––the highest-rated program in cable news––and MSNBC’s Countdown with Keith Olbermann. As a point of reference, on June 14, O’Reilly averaged 3.37 million total viewers, nearly triple what Olbermann drew (1.26 million) in the same time slot. (Over at CNN sibling Headline News, Nancy Grace drew 722,000 viewers, per Nielsen live-plus-same-day ratings data.)On May 18, Brown announced she would step down from her self-titled 8 p.m. show, citing poor ratings. At the time, the anchor issued a statement, saying, “the simple fact is that not enough people want to watch my program, and I owe it to myself and to CNN to get out of the way so that CNN can try something else.” Brown, who agreed to stay on through the transition, averaged 433,000 viewers on June 14. She has been with CNN since February 2008.

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CNN Gives Eliot Spitzer 8 p.m. Co-Hosting Gig

Anthony Crupi

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