As Rosie O’Donnell prepares for a return to “The View,” which is what TMZ is reporting, there is increased speculation that the new right-leaning panelist will come from the cable news ranks. Abby Huntsman co-host of MSNBC’s “The Cycle” and Margaret Hoover, a CNN contributor, are being considered as co-hosts.
“At this time, we have no announcement to make and we are weeks away from making any type of announcement about anything pertaining to the show,” an ABC spokesperson told TVNewser this afternoon.
Insiders tell us Huntsman has been meeting with the ABC powers that be. She joined “The Cycle” a year ago. Hoover has been a contributor at CNN for two years.
O’Donnell left “The View” in 2007. Her exit came on the heels of a highly contentious shouting match with former co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck, who is now co-host of “Fox & Friends.” Earlier this year, O’Donnell expressed eagerness to return to TV, denying rumors she was being considered to be CNN’s Piers Morgan replacement, but acknowledging she’d love the job. She was also in the running to host an MSNBC primetime show in 2007.
Sherri Shepherd and Jenny McCarthy will be leaving the show this summer; Barbara Walters retired in May, leaving Whoopi Goldberg as the only returning host in the fall.