Robertson says bye to ‘700 Club’
TV evangelist Pat Robertson marked the 60-year anniversary of his Christian Broadcasting Network by announcing he was stepping down from its popular “700 Club” morning show and handing hosting duties to his son, Gordon Robertson.
“I will no longer be the host of the ‘700 Club,’ ” Robertson told his audience on Friday’s program. “I thank God for everyone that’s been involved. And I want to thank all of you.”
The 91-year-old entrepreneur began his religious broadcasting empire in 1961 after buying a bankrupt UHF television station in Portsmouth, Va. The CBN’s “700 Club,” which launched Oct. 1, 1966, appealed to viewers by using a network-style talk-show format to communicate with Robertson’s followers as opposed to having speakers preach from a pulpit.
That allowed the Yale graduate to discuss the news of the day, infused with Christian messaging, in an accessible fashion for television watchers.
Guests on the show have included U.S. presidents Donald Trump, Ronald Reagan and Jimmy Carter, who turned 97 Friday. Robertson himself ran for president in 1988. George H.W. Bush — Reagan’s vice president — won that race. The preacher also founded the Christian Coalition, which became a force to reckon with in Republican politics.
While Robertson’s political positions frequently skewed to the right, he advised Trump to “move on” from his fictional claims about having won the 2020 election, where President Biden won by 7 million votes. Robertson suggested Trump was living in an “alternate reality” if he believed what he was saying.
Gordon Robertson, 63, said he doesn’t expect the “700 Club” to change much under his watch. He invited Democrats and Republicans to join him as the program moves forward.
The elder Robertson said he will stop by the show whenever he has a “revelation” to share.