CNN's new morning show got off to a controversial start as the network pulled a promotional spot that called anchor Paula Zahn sexy.

The promo aired on CNN the weekend of Jan. 5, prompting a bulletin on Matt Drudge's website.

Executives at the news channel pulled the spot ? which also featured a zipperlike sound ? claiming it had not been cleared by senior executives and was the work of an overzealous promotions team.

?It was a major blunder by our promo department,? CNN chairman and CEO Walter Isaacson said in a statement. ?The ad was never seen or approved by anyone outside the promo department. I was outraged and so was Paula Zahn, who has spent more than 20 years proving her credibility day in and day out on the air.?

CNN's archrival Fox News Channel jumped into the fray, showing the spot during one of its newscasts.

And Fox News's pugnacious chairman, Roger Ailes, alleged Turner Broadcasting CEO Jamie Kellner was responsible for the promo at the staid CNN.

?This has got Kellner's fingerprints, palm prints and face prints on it,? said Mr. Ailes in the New York Times. ?Nobody in the history of CNN in Atlanta would have used that zipper sound effect or the word sexy. This is Hollywood. This is the way they promote a new sitcom. This is Kellner saying, ?I made Buffy the Vampire Slayer; I can make Paula Zahn.??

The spot featured a voice-over saying ?Where can you find a morning news anchor who's provocative, supersmart, oh yeah, and just a little bit sexy?? Published reports said the 15-second ad ran about ten times before being yanked.

Zahn, 45, joined CNN from Fox News Channel in September. Her new show, American Morning, launched last Monday.

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