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Poor Guests & Low Ratings: The Real Reason Steve Harvey Was Axed From Own Talk Show

Being replaced by Kelly Clarkson was a 'huge embarrassment' for the TV veteran.

Reason Steve Harvey Fired Talk Show

Credit: Getty Images

After more than two decades on TV, host Steve Harvey is being ousted from his own show and replaced by a cheeky pop star — a true slap in the face for the controversial talk show legend!

Well, this is a huge embarrassment for Steve,” RadarOnline.com news editor, Andy Tillett, says during a talk on Dylan Howard‘s podcast, “All Rise.”

“He’s a veteran of television and talk shows who’s been working on the radio and with a daily talk show in the mornings for 10 years now, and he’s being replaced by somebody who’s never hosted a television show before!” adds Tillett.

Explaining why Harvey, 61, has been axed from Steve and replaced by “Because Of You” singer Kelly Clarkson, Tillett says the host’s recent low ratings were a big reason.

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“He’s been axed because the show’s been underperforming and, to be honest with you, his guests are pretty poor. The caliber of guests that you would expect on a talk show, leading into something big like Ellen, would be… A-list people — actors, musicians and the like — and he’ been getting people in from reality shows and very niche… groups to be his main focus in the show,” says Tillett.

Radar readers also know that for years, there has been scandal after scandal with Harvey. Not only has he been dragged into a number of different lawsuits, he’s also been accused of sexual harassment, infidelity, stalking, bullying, and cheating people out of money! Most recently, it was revealed that a guest on his show was made to dress more provocatively than she would’ve liked, and therefore was slammed by the crowd as soon as she went onstage.

“To the wider public he seems like a man who tries to grease his way through things, and doesn’t play by the rules,” says Tillett.

PHOTOS: Steve Harvey Pampers Wife With Steamy Saint Tropez Vacation Amid Divorce Rumors

Harvey’s firing scandal comes just as Julie Chen, another longtime TV host announced her departure from The Talk and sources revealed her possible exit from Big Brother.

“I need to spend more time at home, with my husband and my young son, so I have decided to leave The Talk,” Chen, 48, told her audience one day after giving her shamed husband a shout out during her Big Brother signoff.

“It was seen by many as seen the easiest way out for her,” says Tillett, adding that now that she’s away from the spotlight, she can more easily dodge questions about hubby Les Moonves, the former CEO of CBS Corporation. While he was accused of sexual assault by a series of women, Chen trusts him completely and has put her career on hold to stand by his side.

Also on “All Rise”: will a new mob war erupt after gene Gotti’s prison release? And, will the feds launch a criminal probe into Natalie Wood’s 1981 death?