Elisabeth Hasselbeck was leaving The View, but then she wasn't, and now she's leaving again. We don't really know who to believe, but word is out — again — that the ice queen of daytime talk TV is getting the boot from Barbara Walters' daily gabfest. Just not yet.



Over the weekend, the New York Post's Page Six reported Hasselbeck will still leave The View before her "long term contract" is up — despite the very public denial from Walters early last week. According to the Post report, ABC is "desperate to freshen" The View, and getting rid of Joy Behar and Hasselbeck was seen as the best way to do it. Behar got to announce her exit on her own, but "some enemies" of Hasselbeck's leaked her departure to the press. Walters was up in arms and called the whole thing off. "Barbara was spitting mad that it got mishandled, and called off the firing over [last] weekend," an anonymous source told the Post. The door is still open for an early exit, the source said, and that appears to be true.



Us Weekly is now reporting ABC and Walters were trying to "save face" by calling off Hasselbeck's departure. Hasselbeck will still "announce she is leaving on her own when she is ready," according to their source. So, really, ABC was trying to avoid Elisabeth Hasselbeck becoming their version of Ann Curry. No one wins there. It should be noted that Us wasn't the only outlet reporting Hasselbeck's firing, but they were the first. So maybe we should take their latest report with a grain of salt, if we're dealing with "enemies" leaking reports. Hasselbeck was getting canned because viewers found her "too extreme and right wing," they reported.



In the meantime, Behar's chair still needs to be filled. ShowBiz 411 reported Brooke Shields was the favorite, while the Post says Christie Brinkley and Ali Wentworth are jockeying for position. The second seat just won't be open until Elisabeth Hasselbeck is ready.


http://news.yahoo.com/elisabeth-hasselbeck-fire-herself-ann-curry-style-172241338.html