(From The New York Post -- By Tim Arango)
NBC is weighing a plan to put its network news division and its cable channels CNBC and MSNBC under one roof and base the operation in NEW JERSEY, THE NEW YORK POST has learned.
NBC is searching for an executive to run the combined operation, who would report to JEFF ZUCKER, President of the NBC UNIVERSAL TELEVISION GROUP, sources said.
About a month after reports surfaced that NBC News boss NEAL SHAPIRO was on the way out, he remains on the job -- although sources say Shapiro is likely to vacate his post by the end of the summer.
As part of the shuffling, MSNBC -- the 24-hour cable news network co-owned with MICROSOFT -- could be renamed THE NBC NEWS CHANNEL.
A switch in the name has long been rumored, and NBC has been in discussions with MICROSOFT for some time about altering their partnership to include the name change.
MSNBC chief RICK KAPLAN reports to Shapiro, but CNBC President MARK HOFFMAN reports to Zucker.
A spokeswoman for NBC NEWS said, "Neal Shapiro is president of NBC NEWS."
One source said that while the combined news operation is likely to be based in NEW JERSEY -- where MSNBC and CNBC are housed -- the network's nightly news show and the TODAY show would remain in MANHATTAN.
NBC is in the midst of an upheaval amid falling ratings for its primetime network.
During the recent upfront season, NBC saw its ad sales fall $900 million from the year-ago period.
At the news division, reports of Shapiro's imminent exit came on the heels of the firing of the TODAY show executive producer, TOM TOUCHET. TODAY, the leading morning show, has seen its ratings edge over ABC's GOOD MORNING AMERICA narrow.
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