'Talent' judge Morgan in line for King's CNN talk show

"America's Got Talent" judge Piers Morgan appears to be the front-runner to claim the CNN talk show long hosted by Larry King, and he has won permission from NBC, which airs the hit talent contest, to pursue the CNN job.

Appearing Wednesday on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," NBC Universal chief executive Jeff Zucker noted that Morgan is contractually bound to continue on "America's Got Talent" for three more years, The Associated Press reports.

"Having said that, I can also tell you that he has approached us about asking us to do another job as well," said Zucker, without naming CNN or its talk show soon to be vacated by King.

"I don't think they're mutually exclusive," Zucker said.

Along with candidates such as Katie Couric and Ryan Seacrest, Morgan has been considered a favorite to replace King, who on June 29 announced his departure from the prime-time perch he has occupied for a quarter-century. King, 76, said he would step down from his weeknight show this fall.

Morgan, now King's likely successor, would bring a sharper-edged sensibility to a show entrenched in King's easygoing, regular-Joe style.

Morgan is a 45-year-old former British tabloid editor who turned to television several years ago. In 2008, he won the competition as a contestant on NBC's "Celebrity Apprentice."