'I'm Terribly Sorry, But David Gregory Had a Fit'

The highbrow news shows are seeing a little soap-opera drama—and a good old-fashioned hissy fit: MSNBC's Joe Scarborough had to cancel an appearance on George Stephanopoulos' This Week on ABC, reports the New York Post. "I'm terribly sorry," he told Stephanopoulos, "but David Gregory had a fit." Gregory hosts NBC's Meet the Press, and apparently objected to a corporate sibling appearing on a rival Sunday talk show.

Snarked an ABC source: "Meet the Press has lost more than half a million viewers on David Gregory's watch. That explains his tantrum, but it does not excuse it." Snarked an NBC source: "NBC News never approved an appearance by Joe on George's show. But it's flattering to know that when ABC needed a smart political analyst, they turned to us." (More Joe Scarborough stories.)