Sept. 27: NBC announces that Jay Leno will step down as host of the ”Tonight Show” in 2009 and he will be replaced by fellow late-night host Conan O’Brien. MSNBC-TV reports.

I really love Conan’s show so I hope this won’t change anything. I know its 5 years off anyway. I think this is going to be great and he rightly deserves it.

It’s been reported that the announcement will happen tonight on the Tonight Show.

O’Brien show reaches 2.5 million viewers a night, dominating its time slot. The former “Saturday Night Live” comedy writer was a disaster his first few months on the air, but recovered to become a critical and commercial success.

Now, a man who once lived on 13-week contract renewals has signed a contract with a promise that he will take over the most famous late-night show in television in five years. It’s an enormous expression of faith by NBC, betting that the fickle nature of public taste won’t change much in five years.