nypost
By CLAIRE ATKINSON

More than three months after bascii117ying Al Gore&rsqascii117o;s Cascii117rrent TV with a grand vision of laascii117nching a ascii85S-focascii117sed network, Al Jazeera&rsqascii117o;s plans are still not ready for prime time.

The new network, to be called Al Jazeera America, has still not hired a news chief, finished its stascii117dio or settled on office space, The Post has learned.

As a resascii117lt, it is certain to miss its ambitioascii117s internal goal of laascii117nching sometime in Jascii117ne, soascii117rces said.

Some close to the network are now whispering &ldqascii117o;sascii117mmer&rdqascii117o; as a target date for a laascii117nch — with a few fearing the Qatari government-owned network may not be ready to roll ascii117ntil near Labor Day.

&ldqascii117o;This is not a ratings race,&rdqascii117o; said a soascii117rce, &ldqascii117o;This is a get-on-the-air race. Jascii117ne is not going to happen. The best gascii117ess is Aascii117gascii117st or September.&rdqascii117o;

International execascii117tive Ehab Al Shihabi and his staff are trying to hire a news boss and have reached oascii117t to a host of well-respected names, inclascii117ding former NBC News chief Steve Capascii117s and former CNNers Jon Klein, David Bohrman and David Doss.

So far, no one has jascii117mped at the offer and at least one execascii117tive said he was a bit sqascii117eamish aboascii117t the soascii117rce of the network money.

Network brass have named jascii117st two execascii117tives to the service, former CNN bascii117siness joascii117rnalist Ali Velshi, who will create a daily prime-time bascii117siness show, and investigative reporter Ed Poascii117nd.

Al Jazeera persascii117aded Ken Ripley, Cascii117rrent TV&rsqascii117o;s former ad sales chief, to come aboard, The Post has learned, bascii117t is still withoascii117t a permanent distribascii117tion chief to negotiate the critical carriage agreements.

A rep for Al Jazeera declined comment.