NBC Universal Chief Executive, Jeff Zucker, noted that Morgan is contractually bound to continue on "America's Got Talent" for three more years.
However, the CNN job, were Morgan to land it, would occupy "second position" in his work priority, according to an industry official.
Along with such candidates as Katie Couric and Ryan Seacrest, Morgan has been considered a favourite to replace King, who on June 29 announced his departure from the prime-time perch he has occupied for a quarter century. King, 76, said he would step down from his weeknight show this fall.
The choice of an heir to the 9 p.m. ET slot is a crucial one for CNN as it struggles to boost its sagging prime-time ratings. Also, part of CNN's mission is presumably to restore the lustre of what was "Larry King Live" as a go-to place for newsmakers and celebrities. In recent years, many observers had begun to wonder if King was losing his step as well as his audience.
Morgan, now considered King's likely successor, would bring a sharper-edged sensibility to a show entrenched in King's easygoing, regular-Joe style.
Morgan is a 45-year-old former British tabloid editor who turned to television several years ago. He has since been seen hosting such varied series as "You Can't Fire Me, I'm Famous" for BBC and doing interview shows and documentaries for ITV. He has been a judge on "Britain's Got Talent" and its U.S. spinoff, "America's Got Talent." In 2008, he won the competition as a contestant on NBC's "Celebrity Apprentice."
Piers has that intense, incisive manner that gets to the heart of the matter (so British). He can be brutally honest like his mentor Simon. I hope he also has a sense of humor, so necessary when interviewing people and putting them at their ease. Good luck with that Piers.
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