Between GMA v Live With Kelly and Michael: Who’s the Real Winner With All the Michael Strahan News?

Brian Stelter, host of CNN's Reliable Sources, gives E! News his opinion on how the ABC franchises should move forward

Michael Strahan's changing career will impact the whole family, and by family, we mean the ABC family—which includes both Live! With Kelly and Michael and Good Morning America.

Kelly Ripa, who jokingly refers to Strahan as her "TV husband," found out about his plan to leave Live! and join GMA full time at the same time as the rest of us, a source tells E! News. Although Ripa has yet to comment publicly, a source tells E! News she "was livid" when she first heard the news.

Strahan replaced Regis Philbin on Live! in 2012 and has been appearing as a GMA correspondent since 2014. According to a source, it "was a network decision" to keep Ripa in the dark about his transition within the family, and not Strahan's personal choice.

"He's not the boss," adds an insider. "He is an employee of the network."

Brian Stelter, host of CNN's Reliable Sources, tells E! News that in his opinion, "It's clear this was a botched transition." (ABC has not commented publicly on Strahan's Live! exit or new full-time position with GMA.)

"My impression is that ABC expected this to disappoint Kelly and tried to manage it the best it could but mismanaged it," says Stelter. "You know, when you're going to tell her she's losing her co-host you expect that to be a disappointment no matter what the circumstances so to keep it closely held before the announcement might have made a certain amount of sense."

How much does Live! stand to lose with Strahan's exit, and how much does GMA stand to gain in having him join the morning show full-time? Because the former NFL star is staying on Live! through September, the answer to that question might lie in how Strahan, Ripa and both ABC shows navigate these next few months.

Stelter feels it would be most beneficial to the network as a whole to be open about the situation. "My advice, which is never taken, is to talk about it on the air," he tells E! News. "All the viewers are in on the story. All the viewers are in on the drama. So they should talk about the drama. They should talk about the tension."

We will definitely be watching.