NEW YORK (AP) - Addiction specialist Dr. Drew Pinsky will have a new prime-time show weeknights on HLN starting next spring, talking about issues from Charlie Sheen to airport pat-downs.
The network, formerly CNN Headline News, made the announcement Monday. Pinsky already hosts “Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew,” in its fourth season on VH1, and separate shows about sober living and on rehabilitation for sex addiction.
HLN didn’t say where Pinsky will fit into an evening lineup that already includes shows with Nancy Grace, Joy Behar and Jane Velez-Mitchell. HLN currently airs a 10 p.m. ET rerun of Grace’s show from two hours earlier; Pinsky’s show will replace the rerun, but the network may make some time-slot shifts, said Scot Safon, executive vice president in charge of HLN.
Pinsky is a frequent guest on CNN and HLN, where his appearances are usually well-received, Safon said. Just last week, Pinsky appeared on John King’s CNN show to talk about Facebook bullying.
Those are the type of stories Pinsky would likely feature on his show, where questions are raised about the behavior of either celebrities like CBS’ Sheen or common people making headlines, Safon said.
“Our audience all day long is responding in a big way to these stories,” he said.
Pinsky is particularly good at taking these stories and making them relevant to viewers, he said.
“He’s a real doctor,” he said. “He’s a behaviorist, he’s tremendously empathetic, he explains things well. He has _ for lack of a better term _ a bedside manner that makes you trust him.”
Pinsky also works in radio, as host of the “Loveline” program that’s been on the air since 1984.
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HLN is part of Time Warner Inc.’s CNN.
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