Big media news this morning as Megyn Kelly, who had three feet out the door of Fox News anyway, is jumping to NBC. She’s leaving the House of Jackals for a real network, probably for less money but for the prestige of the Peacock, of Tom Brokaw, and a real news division.
One of Kelly’s jobs will be a daily talk show, which means that NBC News prez Andy Lack sees her as jump starting a rival to “The View” at 11am. That’s where “Access Hollywood Live,” a show that once featured Billy Bush, is seen now. But “AHL” could be sent into syndication, or closed down, or moved to the afternoon. (The noon hour is given back to local stations, and “Days of our Lives” is seen at 1pm.)
“The View” ratings have been in decline, and the hosts are almost always in some flux. The show has been whittled down to Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar, and its unclear if they want to stay another season or have the energy to ‘relaunch’ one more time hoping to regain their former glory.
Kelly would be perfect for an NBC “View” and there’s plenty of “Today” show personnel to draw from including Hoda Kotb, Kathie Lee Gifford, Natalie Morales (farmed out to “AHL”). Plus Katie Couric’s having a great return to the “Today” show this week. So who knows?
One thing’s for sure: Kelly is being paid less than Lester Holt, who anchors the nightly news, and Matt Lauer, who just re-signed for the Today show. And even though some reports say the Murdochs wanted her to stay at Fox, Kelly was gone– everyone there dislikes her, and she’s burned a lot of bridges. But who cares? She’s where all TV journalists want to be — at one of the Big Three. Ask Major Garrett, who went from Fox to CBS, or anyone else who’s escaped. You feel like the von Trapps when they get to the top of the mountain.
