Dylan Ratigan is no longer listed at host of CNBC's "Fast Money" nor is his picture on the Fast Money web page.
Dylan hosted the show Thursday March 26th and was gone on Friday March 27th with Melissa Lee as the fill-in host.
From TVNewser:
"More details are emerging about the abrupt departure of Dylan Ratigan from CNBC. We just got off the phone with CNBC spokesperson Brian Steel who says, "Dylan has told us he is leaving effective today."
In what was a mutual decision, Steel tells TVNewser, "Due to the serious economic times in which we live, we made a decision that it would be a distraction for Dylan to host 'Fast Money' today."
My Theory why Dylan left without a goodbye to his audience
Dylan Ratigan may have gotten too close to the truth with
this radio interview
where he compared the people making money at the major investment banks to the crooks at Enron. He gives very clear details how "people" sold insurance for faulty investment products, kept the fees for the policies but had insufficient reserves to pay the claims most anyone with a brain should have expected given they were making loans to people who we knew could not pay them back once rates adjusted up or housing prices fell.Marketwatch media columnist Jon Friedman writes Monday about the departure of “Fast Money” anchor Dylan Ratigan from CNBC based on an interview he had with Ratigan on Sunday.
Friedman writes, “On Sunday, 36-year-old Ratigan stressed three points:
“1) He had and continues to have great affection for CNBC, despite what some blogs say, 2) his goal is to communicate his concern for America’s financial mess and, 3) he hasn’t already arranged to jump to another TV network.
“‘I’m leaving CNBC in order to pursue this story with the broadest possible footprint,’ he said.
“He added: ‘People are going to jump to a conclusion that this is about CNBC. It’s not — it’s about me.
Dylan Ratigan, the host of CNBC's "Fast Money," had just stepped out of his apartment in lower Manhattan on Sunday afternoon when a stranger stopped him. Recognizing Ratigan immediately, the man cut short a cell phone conversation and extended his hand.
"Go get 'em!" he told Ratigan, who in turn smiled politely at his new friend, made some small talk and moved on.
"Ever since this started," he told me with a self-deprecating grin, "people think I'm some kind of (bleeping) Che Guevara!"
By "this," Ratigan was referring to the barrage of speculation that he will leave CNBC after five years. His contract with CNBC, a unit of General Electric (GE:General Electric Company
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GE 10.08, -0.70, -6.5%) , will expire on March 31. Many media blogs suggest that he will wind up working for another TV network. Walt Disney's ABC (DIS:Walt Disney Company
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For now, Ratigan smiles at the scuttlebutt. "If I don't know yet what I'm going to do," he says, "how can anyone else be so sure?"
Regardless of whether that might sound like a negotiating ploy, Ratigan has always been very ambitious. He once told me that his dream job was to be a late-night talk-show host. See previous column.
There seems little doubt that Ratigan will want to remain in television. CNBC might decide to play hardball and make it difficult for him to join another network right away. It certainly wouldn't want to see one of its celebrities go off to a different TV operation.
Ratigan's star could rise to even greater heights elsewhere -- and he might also bring his fans with him, something that could hurt CNBC's ratings.
CNBC is the No. 1 business-news TV network. But audiences can be fickle. The Fox Business Network (which, like MarketWatch, the publisher of this column, is owned by News Corp.) and Bloomberg Television are intent on pressing CNBC.
The CNBC-Ratigan affair is a fascinating game of high-stakes poker, being played by two very determined parties. And who will blink first? Both sides are trying hard to take the high road, at this point, but TV is a business driven by large egos and big money.
When he talked with me about his prospects, Ratigan used the phrase, "I'm leaving CNBC because ..." several times, indicating that he was headed for the door. Still, I suspect that if CNBC offered to continue the negotiations, he'd listen. It's possible a deal could yet be worked out.
Right now, the network seems to believe that Ratigan is about to depart. When I asked CNBC spokesman Brian Steel if he wanted to offer a comment to this column, he made it sound like Ratigan and the network were on the verge of parting ways.
"We thank him for all of his quality contributions and wish him well," Steel told me by email late on Sunday afternoon.
Ratigan would be the second high-profile CNBC figure to make headlines recently for leaving. It was widely reported that Jonathan Wald, the network's leading news executive, had a contract dispute with the network. Officially, Wald's last day is March 31.
Ratigan declined to discuss his contract in detail and insisted that another deal is not in place. CNBC would miss Ratigan, too, and so might many viewers. He stands out because of his ebullience and great knowledge of the financial markets.
What do you think? Why would he vanish without a word or a farewell party?
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