CNN cancels Eliot Spitzer show

Eliot Spitzer's brief run as a TV host came to an abrupt end Wednesday when CNN canceled his show and announced that veteran anchor Anderson Cooper's news program, "AC 360," would move into the 8 p.m. time slot in early August.

Spitzer -- who anchored his last program Wednesday night -- said in a statement Wednesday, "We engaged serious people in conversations about national and global issues in a way that was informative and challenging. I believe that we provided diverse and valuable perspectives during the show's tenure. I thoroughly enjoyed my time at CNN."

A CNN spokeswoman said, "We are in discussions with Eliot about an alternative role."

The cancellation was expected: Spitzer's show, "In the Arena," and its immediate predecessor, "Parker/Spitzer," which launched in October 2010, were reportedly beset with off-screen strife, which led to the departure of his on-screen partner, Washington Post columnist Kathleen Parker, in February. Moreover, crushed between successful programs on Fox News Channel and MSNBC, Spitzer's program never got a critical mass of viewers that would have ensured survival.

Spitzer -- who resigned as governor of New York in March 2008 in the wake of a prostitution scandal -- joined the network just days after the CNN boss who had hired him, Jonathan Klein, had been fired.