King Named Dobbs Successor

Lou Dobbs suddenly closed his controversial tenure at CNN last night. He will be replaced by John King.

CNN’s going back to straight news at 7 p.m.

After the wild and woolly, and ratings-grabbing, tenure of Lou Dobbs, the network has gone with its most down-the-middle newsman, John King, to succeed Dobbs, starting early next year.

Think there’s a message there? CNN has positioned itself as the antidote to the shouters and weepers on right at Fox and on the left at MSNBC. Except during Dobbs’ time on the air, when the anchor bashed illegal immigrants and questioned the president’s citizenship.

Of course, Dobbs gave CNN a personality to stack up there with Keith Olbermann at MSNBC and Glenn Beck on Fox. And on cable news, personality seems to equal ratings, since CNN consistently ranks behind its more obnoxious peers.

But CNN is continuing to bet with its naming of King that viewers want their news played straight. King has been the network’s chief national correspondent since 2005 and hosts the network’s Sunday show, “State of the Union.”

"The program will reflect what CNN is all about: straight facts from our anchors and the widest range of opinions from across the political spectrum," CNN president Jonathan Klein said in a statement Thursday morning. King is the network’s acknowledged political expert and the network says he will concentrate his 7 p.m. show on “what is really going on in Washington and across America.”

The choice of a straight newsman is a 180-degree turn from Dobbs.

Last night, Dobbs quit his 7 p.m. CNN show, telling viewers he's "the last of the original anchors here on CNN."

Dobbs expressed his gratitude to the network he's called home for 29 years, and said "some leaders in media, politics and business have been urging me to go beyond the role here at CNN and to engage in constructive problem solving as well as to contribute positively to the great understanding of the issues of our day."

Among those "issues" are probably immigration, about which Dobbs has become increasingly outspoken, and the so-called "birther movement," with which Dobbs' has aligned himself by asking questions about the President's birth certificate.

It didn't take long for Olbermann to crack wise about the news: Last night, the rival anchor suggested that Sarah Palin might become Dobbs' replacement. Even Dobb's Time Warner corporate cousin, Time Magazine's James Poniewozik, busted the seasoned anchor's chops with his headline: Lou Dobbs Gets Off of CNN's Lawn.

In September, Dobbs was spotted having dinner with Fox News chief Roger Ailes. In their coverage of Dobbs' departure, many commentators and reporters are citing speculating that he might be considering joining Fox News or Fox Business Network.