Piers Morgan CNN Rumors Take a Very Public Turn Towards Reality…
Less than a day after Jonathan Klein denied that there had been any negotiating with Piers Morgan, Simon Cowell has stuck his nose in and potentially blown the doors wide open in an interview with Extra TV…
“Extra’s” Terri Seymour spoke exclusively with former “American Idol” judge Simon Cowell, and he broke some big news about helping his pal, Piers Morgan, broker a deal with CNN.
“[Morgan] was under contract to us on ‘America’s Got Talent,’ so he called me and we helped sort of broker the deal,” Cowell said. “I knew about this weeks ago.”
Either Cowell is blowing smoke just to cause trouble or CNN now looks pretty silly with its flimsy and full of wiggle room denials…
Update: CNN puts out a statement to Mediaite which still doesn’t settle the issue completely and certainly doesn’t address the bulk of Cowell’s comments. It just says where things are now…not how things got to where things are now…
We have not offered Piers Morgan a job, and we are not currently in negotiations with him. We are always open to new opportunities and to various talent who express an interest in our programming. Piers is one such talent, but there is no deal.
Inside Cable News 
July 1, 2010 at 10:38 pm
If CNN had simply admitted to considering Morgan or talking to him or even negotiating, it would have… looked bad?
You can choose to be a rock or you can be a pansy. Jonathan Klein need to be watered now.
July 1, 2010 at 10:48 pm
Who is gonna watch this guy? I do not understand this move.
July 1, 2010 at 10:58 pm
Maybe CNN is trying to think a little outside the norm. They’ve tried several types of journos and all have pretty much fizzled. I won’t criticise them for considering someone like Pierce Morgan. Bit for a self-proclaimed “real news” outfit, their responses about him amounts to to reporting a lie. That’s a not a good for building trust.
July 1, 2010 at 11:01 pm
“Let’s get a smartass British talent-show judge to replace an American icon.” Brilliant.
July 1, 2010 at 11:06 pm
^Uh..no offense there, Al. 😉
July 1, 2010 at 11:21 pm
^ No offence taken. I’m American born and have never been a talent-show judge, smartass or otherwise. My Brit accent and spelling are from my childhood schooling.
July 1, 2010 at 11:28 pm
^Thanks for the update, Al. I knew there was something about travels between the UK and US, but couldn’t remember the details.
July 2, 2010 at 4:54 am
So, what is being suggested here? CNN Lies? It is a proven fact that they have in the past….simply recall Eason Jordon’s admission about maintaining an office in Iraq, where in order to do so, CNN withheld a ton of information about the Saddam regime.
CNN lies? Is this the conclusion that will be reached? Little or big, as I note, they have done it in the past, are they doing it now as well?
July 2, 2010 at 7:47 am
It’s interesting to me that there’s been little to no reference (that I’ve read) to Morgan being forced to resign as editor of the London Daily Telegraph after he published fake photos of British soldiers abusing Iraqi detainees.
Reportedly, after the photos were proven to be fake, Morgan refused to issue an apology and the paper’s board fired him.
July 2, 2010 at 10:27 am
This hire, if it happens, will kill what is left of CNN’s primetime. What experience does this guy have covering hard news on primetime? King had a lot of fluff interviews, but when news broke he was interviewing people that mattered.