Tony Hayward out as BP CEO; American Bob Dudley steps in

Everyone heard the rumblings in the distance, but with the second-quarter earnings reports this morning, BP finally dropped the bomb: Tony Hayward is out. He’ll step down from his post as BP’s CEO this October. It’s been reported that he’ll be sent to Russia to work on a BP joint venture there.

Stepping up into Hayward’s oil-soaked shoes is BP Managing Director Robert Dudley. Dudley is an American from Mississippi, and he’s been in charge of the spill response for the past month.

This news comes on the same day that BP releases its second quarter earnings report, revealing a $17 billion loss in the second quarter. The British company is looking to rescue its bottom line and its reputation. We don’t have a crystal ball, of course, but we do have Alice Schroeder, columnist at Bloomberg News, and Captain Danny Wray, who’s cleaning up oil down on the gulf.