The Hill Times begins speculating on who the next host of Mike Duffy Live On The Hill will be. And since the media loves baseless speculation about political leadership races, perhaps we should all begin some rampant speculation about this media leadership race, oui?

So, to get the ball rolling, I will confirm that anonymous CTV employees are none too happy about the selection of Graham Richardson as interim host (especially after earlier reports that John McCallum would get the job). Many programing strategists feel that in these turbulent political times, it is essential to have a permanent host in place so as to not appear divided. Senior members of Globemedia are privately concerned that not naming a permanent host by the time Harper’s January 27th throne speech is read would create a leadership vacuum that Don Newman could exploit. As a result, many are quietly urging the appointment of Tom Clark as host, even if this means that not all the other candidates will be fully vetted for the job.

However, well-connected media insiders say that Rosemary Thompson would prefer a longer hiring period, as this would allow her grass roots campaign to gather momentum. Sources close to Rosie confirm that many viewers are concerned about Tom Clark’s time outside of the country as Washington Bureau chief, and this could become her main campaign wedge issue.

Rest assured, we will all be following this CTV leadership crisis with bated breath.