Friday, January 21, 2011

Keith Olbermann out at MSNBC

From Huffington Post -
Keith Olbermann and MSNBC have ended their contract, according to a statement from MSNBC. The last episode of "Countdown" will air this evening, Friday, January 21.


MSNBC's statement reads as follows:

MSNBC and Keith Olbermann have ended their contract. The last broadcast of "Countdown with Keith Olbermann" will be this evening. MSNBC thanks Keith for his integral role in MSNBC's success and we wish him well in his future endeavors.
This news is a little stunning, yet it isn't entirely surprising, given Comcast's recent takeover of MSNBC.  Guesses are that Rachel Maddow is next, but we'll see what happens in the coming days and weeks.

Later...

8 comments:

Thane Eichenauer said...

I presume that any given company (especially an EVUL corporation) would keep any staffer so long as he brought in viewers and didn't alienate advertisers.

Maddow may not be my cup of tea but she is certainly more tolerable than Olbermann was. My presumption is that his angry hectoring style didn't appeal to TV viewers. If he was popular and interesting his contract would be renewed regardless of the name of the corporation that owns the network.

Craig said...

Actually, Olbermann's Countdown was easily the highest-rated program on MSNBC.

Ratings for Thursday night:

http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2011/01/21/cable-news-ratings-for-thursday-january-20-2011-piers-morgan-gets-little-help-from-ricky-gervais/79685

Lauren said...

Let's get him to AZ for a fundraiser!

no_slappz said...

cpmaz, you wrote:

Actually, Olbermann's Countdown was easily the highest-rated program on MSNBC.

That's like saying he's Number One among all viewers living in Antarctica.

Does anyone watch MSNBC? A year or two ago there was a well known financial talking head on CNBC -- Dylan Ratigan. Though I thought he was good at what he did, he had a higher opinion of himself than did CNBC management. As a result of this difference in opinion about his talent and value to the network, his contract was not renewed.

He went to MSNBC, where, as far as I know, he labors in total obscurity.

Anyway, Thane is right. ALL media must pay its bills, which means if Olbermann's mouth is a barrier to revenue from advertisers, he's cooked. He got the boot. So it seems his mouth was the barrier and now he's out.

How long will it take him to get a new gig? Hard to say. He'll undoubtedly have to drop down a notch or two on the media visibility scale. Where would that place him?

I've only listened to him for brief periods, thus my opinion is based on minimal exposure to his act. Nevertheless, in those brief moments he came across as extraordinarily angry and without the slightest trace of a sense of humor, which are two signs of someone who takes his own nonsense way too seriously.

That lefty dictatorial trait came burning through, making it plain he's a guy who thinks he's much smarter than those he despises, when it's evident he's not.

Anyway, several days ago, when I saw the news item in which Olbermann apologized for speaking in strong terms, I wondered whether he was in hot water with MSNBC. Apparently he was.

just jen said...

I'd sure like to see him pull a Conan. He has a loyal fan following and anyone who doubts it forgets the massive outpouring of support and demands for his return after he was suspended for campaign contributions. They also forget that millions in funds his viewers have donated after he's highlighted the medical needs of major communities, Arizona included.

He was the only one who used his soapbox to nightly hold Bush accountable for the declaration of victory that was not. Who knows, mayber there's a friend/financial contributor or two of the Bush administration in Comcast's higher echelon. His Thurber selection seemed to communicate this was a slightly paranoid and maybe vengeful house cleaning.

The news has lost a unique and necessary voice.

no_slappz said...

just jen you wrote:

I'd sure like to see him pull a Conan. He has a loyal fan following and anyone who doubts it forgets the massive outpouring of support and demands for his return after he was suspended for campaign contributions.

Conan is funny. Olbermann is a nasty guy who can't stop ranting. There's no chance TBS would put a buzz-kill like Olbermann between shows that stick to the lighter side of life.

They also forget that millions in funds his viewers have donated after he's highlighted the medical needs of major communities, Arizona included.

Until you see the money, any claims about fundraising are just talk.

He was the only one who used his soapbox to nightly hold Bush accountable for the declaration of victory that was not.

In other words, he left the practice of journalism long ago. Who knew?

Who knows, mayber there's a friend/financial contributor or two of the Bush administration in Comcast's higher echelon.

Have you forgotten that Bush is no longer president? It's Obama now, and he ain't doing too well.

Meanwhile, no one "contributes" to a cable-TV company. Cable companies get their revenue from subscribers and advertisers -- the more the merrier. If Olbermann, in the eyes of management, a weak link, then out he goes.

If management believed it could make a pile of money showing the Yule Log burning 24 hours a day, then that's what viewers would see.

Anyway, Comcast may well have plans to change the format at MSNBC. I believe its viewership is low compared with its rivals.

His Thurber selection seemed to communicate this was a slightly paranoid and maybe vengeful house cleaning.

Paranoid? Well, paranoid on Olbermann's part. The funny part is how he and other liberal nitwits jumped in front of the crowd to blame "conservative talk-show hosts" for driving Loughner to commit a mass murder/mass wounding, but the only gasbag to get fired in the aftermath of the tragedy is this finger-pointing fool.

The news has lost a unique and necessary voice.

The fact that you call his act "news" is more than scary.

Anonymous said...

slappy you are so insensitive

no_slappz said...

terry,

Insensitive? Yeah. That's me.

Media gasbags come and go. Big deal.