Money | NBC News Cable Guys Won't Likely Fill Russert's Seat Execs don't want pundits messing with 'pristine' NBC News By Kevin Spak Posted Jun 16, 2008 3:12 PM CDT Copied Chris Matthews, left, hosts MSNBC's "Hardball" with, NBC News' political director Chuck Todd, center, and Joe Scarborough. (AP Photo) Early word on Tim Russert's Meet the Press successor focused on in-house candidates, like Chris Matthews, David Gregory, or Joe Scarborough. But one insider now tells Variety that there’s “no way” a cable personality will land the gig. NBC’s broadcast division would rather stay “pristine”—free from the punditry that hovers around MSNBC. Of the three, former correspondent Gregory is seen as having the best shot, because he earned his reputation on network news, and hasn’t been in the cable game long. It will in any case be hard to fill Russert’s shoes—as other networks' attempts to catch him in the ratings have shown. Russert's closest competitor, ABC's George Stephanopoulos, trailed him by an average 1 million viewers. Read These Next She was born at a McDonald's, so obviously this is her nickname. Two Powerball players have a lot of financial planning to do. Trump may be targeting this city next due to a misleading news report. South Korea to pick up workers held at Hyundai plant. Report an error