Knowing When To Sign Off

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Nothing lasts forever.  Not even cable talk show hosts and local TV news anchors.  Here's two more examples of those who chose to get out before they're put out to pasture.

The King of Cable Talk Relinquishes His Throne

Larry King began on CNN in 1985 after a successful run as an overnight host on the Mutual radio network.  To date, he's done at least 50,000 interviews in his 53-year career in broadcasting, talking to presidents, entertainers, sports figures and people in the news.  Now King says he's hanging it up in the fall, though he says he'll still do specials.

It's no big secret that King's (and CNN's) ratings have taken a nosedive ever since Fox News and MSNBC surged ahead with partisan talk shows starring the likes of Sean Hannity and Rachel Maddow.  Nor are the recent headlines in the tabloid media detailing problems between King and his seventh wife Shawn, though they have reportedly patched things up.

There's been talk that King's replacement might either be Ryan Seacrest or Piers Morgan, two non-journalists who have made their name in reality TV.  Or maybe CNN should forget about competing with the other guys and just schedule another news hour.  It's the least they could do instead of trading in one embarrassing talk show host (Lou Dobbs) for another (Eliot Spitzer).

Another Anchor Bites The Dust

Cyndy Brucato has become the latest Twin Cities TV news anchor to sign off.  She's leaving KSTP, Channel 5 in September after the Minnesota State Fair ends to return to her communications business, and to spend some time with her father.

Brucato was teamed with co-anchor Stan Turner in the 1980s during the glory years of what is now "5 Eyewitness News", ruling the TV ratings before KARE, Channel 11 came out of nowhere to dethrone them.  Then KSTP spent the next two decades playing musical anchor chairs while their ratings were spiraling downward, to the point where today they're in fourth place.

Brucato left the station during the 1990s to work as chief of staff for then-Governor Arne Carlson of Minnesota, a Republican.  She returned to KSTP in 2004 during another of their anchor upheavals, and the numbers started improving--at least for awhile.  In recent years, she's been relegated to anchoring the 6:30 p.m. news.

People are wondering if, given the current state of local TV news, "elder statesmen" such as Dave Moore and Don Shelby will be allowed to continue being anchors.  For women, unless they've Botoxed themselves to death, that's even less likely.  Viewers (and male TV executives) apparently like their female news anchors to be young and smokin' hot.  Like the rest of TV, experience matters less than what you look like and how young you are.  For Larry King, Cyndy Brucato and others in their situation, that seems to be the bottom line.