REEGE'S RATINGS TO GO UP WITHOUT KATHIE LEE?

REEGE'S RATINGS TO GO UP WITHOUT KATHIE LEE?

TEMPE, Ariz. (Wireless Flash) -- Kathie Lee Gifford's recent departure from her morning talk show could be a boon for the program's ratings. That's the word from Phoenix-based media consultant Chris Ryan, who's predicting the show will soar in the ratings thanks to a new crop of viewers who previously avoided the show because they couldn't stand Kathie Lee. He says many viewers are annoyed by Gifford but love her co-host Regis Philbin -- whose stint on "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire" has put him on the top of the world with TV viewers. Ryan predicts the anti-Kathie Lee crowd will cause such a jump in the talk show's ratings that it will soon become more popular than "The Jerry Springer Show."