It looks like CNN’s Parker Spitzer could be shortened to just Spitzer for a while.
Kathleen Parker, the co-host of Parker Spitzer with former New York gov. Eliot Spitzer, will be getting canned from the show, according to a New York Post report.
“There is no doubt in the world they are going to replace her,” an insider told The Post. “It’s beyond whispers — it’s a hot and heavy discussion.”
Spitzer and Parker, a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist, haven’t generated the sort of buzz the news operation would like to see. The show debuted in October to poor ratings, and last month, the Post reported that Parker threw a fit after complaining that Spitzer overpowered on-air discussion. Parker did not deny reports that she stormed off-set, although she did reveal to the New York Times, “I don’t storm, I saunter.”
In October, the Post reported that the show was having trouble booking guests.
Parker Spitzer averaged less than 500,000 viewers in its first week, finishing behind Fox News’ The O’Reilly Factor and MSNBC’s Countdown. The show averaged even fewer viewers for the month of November.
But insiders say Spitzer, who left office in 2008 after being linked to a prostitution ring, doesn’t need to worry about getting canned from the show.
“They’re standing behind Eliot,” a source said. “[The producers] really like him.”
The Post added that sources have said Parker has been threatening to quit, so perhaps she will beat CNN to the punch.
“It’s absolutely a work in progress,” Parker said of the show in December 2010, two months after its debut.