Erin Burnett was officially offered the CNN morning anchor spot, but she decided to change the deal midstream after shaking hands, leaving everyone -- including newly appointed president, Jeff Zucker -- uneasy about where mornings stand for the struggling network, Breaking Celebrity News is exclusively reporting.

A CNN insider says the 36-year-old anchor was a shoo-in for the highly coveted gig, until her diva demands became too much to handle. However, that hasn't stopped the highly ambitious journalist from working behind the scenes to throw her weight around at the in-flux news network.

All this as Zucker works hard to turn around the station's sluggish ratings and compete head- to-head with cable juggernaut Fox News.

“Erin was officially offered the spot, but as a negotiating tactic played too hard to get. Causing executives to wonder if she’s worth the cost of doing business,” the insider reveals.

“The word around the newsroom was that Erin’s move to mornings was in the bag, and it was pretty much a done deal, just not signed yet, and she had already started to talk about who she would work with and who she wouldn't.

“She made it crystal cle