By RICHARD HUFF
Journalist Kathleen Parker has split from her TV partner Eliot Spitzer.
After months of rumors about their on-air relationship and the future of their work on CNN, network officials announced Friday Parker was leaving ‘Parker Spitzer’ and starting Monday the 8 p.m. show would be reformatted around the former New York Governor.
CNN executive vice president Ken Jautz told staffers that Parker decided to “focus on her writing, and we have decided to take the show in a new direction.”
Starting Monday, the show will take on an ensemble format, with a series of contributors and guests joining Spitzer each night. The new show will be called “In The Arena.”
Former Fox anchor E.D. Hill along with Will Cain will join Spitzer, as well as others within and outside CNN.
“While I am extremely proud of the show we created, and the subject matter and level of discourse ‘Parker Spitzer’ promoted every night, it was a difficult decision to scale back my column a few months ago, and with the show going in a new direction, it’s a good time to move on,” Parker said in a statement.
Spitzer said it “was a joy working with her as a teammate, and I continue to be a huge fan of the wisdom that jumps from her written work and the wit, charm and insight she brings to all that she does.”
Jautz said the new show will look beyond the headlines to analyze and discuss the most important stories of the day.
The change on “Parker Spitzer” is the latest in a series of shifts at CNN as the folks there work to shore up the network’s prime-time ratings.
“Parker Spitzer” launched last fall to tepid reviews and not so hot ratings. The show has also been dogged by rumors of discord between Parker and Spitzer. The knock was that Parker was to soft, while Spitzer too domineering.