Hasselbeck was reported to leave the ABC talk show at the end of the current season because viewers found her 'too extreme and right wing.'
- Mar 9, 2013
AceShowbiz - A day after Joy Behar announced her departure from "The View", it's reported that Elisabeth Hasselbeck might follow the same route. Quickly responding to the swirling rumors, a representative for the show says, "Elisabeth Hasselbeck is a valued member of The View and has a long-term contract."
Rumors of Hasselbeck's exit started to spread as a so-called insider told Us Weekly, "The viewers they polled all said she was too extreme and right wing. People did not watch the show because of Elisabeth. So they told her yesterday her contract would not be renewed." She was said to be leaving the talk show at the end of the current season.
Other sources told NY Daily News that Barbara Walters, the co-creator and original cast member of "The View", was considering stepping down as well. However, the veteran journalist and her rep refused to comment on the news.
Meanwhile, Behar and ABC had made it official that Behar would not return to the next season of "The View". Her contract will expire in August, the same month the show will wrap up its 16th season.
Explaining her reason to quit the talk show, Behar said, "It seemed like the right time. You reach a point when you say to yourself, 'Do I want to keep doing this?' There are other things on my plate I want to do - I've been writing a play, I've been neglecting my standup."
Behar and Walters are the only remaining original cast members of "The View". Hasselbeck, meanwhile, joined the show in 2003, following Lisa Ling's departure in 2002.
