Was the Goldberg, Behar Exit Orchestrated on "The View?"

TV shows pull publicity stunts all the time. It's part of the ratings game. The more people buzzing, the more people watching.

While I have no inside knowledge of what went down on "The View" Thursday morning when Whoppi Goldberg and Joy Behar decided to storm off the set after Fox News blowhard Bill O'Reilly made some comments they didn't like about the controversial mosque that may be built near Ground Zero, it reeked of cheap "publicity stunt."

Reilly argued against the mosque's construction and declared that Muslims were to blame for the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Behar and Golberg weren't having it. So they got up and left. Which is their constitutional right.

But the guest was Reilly, a big-mouthed commentator who isn't known for keeping his opinions to himself. Did Behar and Goldberg expect anything less?

Why leave?

Well, a stormy exit will get folks talking...and blogging. And talking -- and blogging -- some more.

And that's exactly what happened.

Reilly gabbed about the hissy fit on his show last night. Behar did the same thing on her show.

Ah, talk about a story with legs. At least for a day.

Barbara Walters, a co-host on "The View" and one of the show's executive producers, chastised her colleagues' decision to leave, saying it never should've happened.

OK, that's the press release response and it made Walters look good.

Again, I have no inside knowledge, but I wouldn't be surprised if Walters silently cheered the move -- or even helped orchestrate it.

Publicity stunt.

After all, all's fair in love -- and ratings.