Prima Donna Keith Olbermann's Civil War with NBC
As you may recall, Keith Olbermann was recently suspended from the air after news broke that he had contributed funds to three Democratic candidates. In the Daily Beast today, media reporter Howard Kurtz gives us the back story of that debacle. In outlining Olbermann's civil war with the NBC execs, Kurtz delivers a juicy story about liberal-puffs and poofs being, well, puffy liberal poofs. It's a delicious soap opera worthy of the progressive era. Not to be missed.
“We are at war,” Griffin [MSNBC president] responded.
If so, it was a war that had spread beyond the principal combatants to many of the journalists who work at NBC and MSNBC. From the moment Olbermann was found to have donated money to three Democratic candidates, there has been a deepening sense of anger and frustration among his colleagues, according to interviews with eight knowledgeable sources....
Network staffers use phrases like “scorched-earth policy” and “totally narcissistic response” to describe how Olbermann has dealt with criticism of his political donations. A recurring theme is that he has made it impossible for MSNBC to argue that it is journalistically different from Fox News, which has no prohibition against political donations by such commentators and talk-show hosts as Sean Hannity and Karl Rove. The word hypocrisy has frequently been aimed at Olbermann...
Even those who admired Olbermann’s broadcasting skills felt that his behavior, such as making his staff leave notes outside his door rather than speaking to him, had gone too far. He was a royal pain, they said, and management had become exhausted trying to rein him in.
Olbermann is credited with helping MSNBC overtake CNN in the ratings, but will MSNBC's future include the former sports-broadcaster-turned-bombastic-pundit?
It is entirely possible that the anger will subside and the former sportscaster will reclaim his cleanup spot, as the leader of a liberal lineup. But NBC executives say that the cable channel is far better positioned to withstand an Olbermann departure than it might have been a year ago...
What’s more, the incoming bosses at Comcast, which will soon close a deal to buy NBC from General Electric, are a more buttoned-down crowd, and people at the network expect less tolerance for Olbermann than Zucker has shown over the years.
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Comments :
Sep '10
Re: Prima Donna Keith Olbermann's Civil War with NBC
"he has made it impossible for MSNBC to argue that it is journalistically different from Fox News"
That quote is the real news from this sorority house spat. If they really think donations make them different, they're delusional. And different to whom? From a marketing point of view, do they really think any of their viewers are deciding which channel to watch based on who is allowed to donate to political campaigns?
Sep '10
Re: Prima Donna Keith Olbermann's Civil War with NBC
I agree with The Economist that MSNBC is one large in kind donation to the Democrats anyway. That said, with the amount of cat hair accumulating in the comments, the only thing that would make it better is Claire Berlinski commenting.
Re: Prima Donna Keith Olbermann's Civil War with NBC
K T - I couldn't agree more. But the first reader comment on Kurtz' piece proves, I think, that they ARE delusional. Check it out:
Edited on Nov 15, 2010 at 7:07amAug '10
Re: Prima Donna Keith Olbermann's Civil War with NBC
Believe me when I say I don't normally browse on E!Online but apparently Mr. Olbermann is fighting his battle on two fronts and giving Ricochet and Mr. Sajak some publicity as well.
Jul '10
Re: Prima Donna Keith Olbermann's Civil War with NBC
Someone pointed out that a petition signed by 300,000 Olbermann fans was sent to MSNBC. Amazingly, this is how many people actually watch the show. My favorite MSNBC performer is Mister Ed. There's a man worth his oats.
Jul '10
Re: Prima Donna Keith Olbermann's Civil War with NBC
To quote Henry Kissinger, "it's a pity they can't both lose." However, if anyone can pull off that logical impossibility, I'm confident that MSNBC and Olbermann are the ones.
Aug '10
Re: Prima Donna Keith Olbermann's Civil War with NBC
I love how a corporate giant (and defence contractor) like General Electric is the liberal darling in this soap opera.
But, I thought corporations were eeeevil!
May '10
Re: Prima Donna Keith Olbermann's Civil War with NBC
That's about to change as Comcast enters the picture. The Roberts family (Founder Ralph and his son Brian, the current CEO) lean towards the Democrats but believe in buying as much influence as they can on both sides of the aisle (they gave $10,000 to both state parties in Pennsylvania).
While ratings are not as critical in cable as they are in broadcast TV, MSNBC is a problem for them. At an average of 1 million viewers in primetime they trail behind 23 other networks.
The top 5 spots still belong to the broadcast nets, while ESPN and Fox News top the cable ratings.
Oct '10
Re: Prima Donna Keith Olbermann's Civil War with NBC
Here's another priceless excerpt: "say that several of NBC’s front-line stars, including Tom Brokaw, have expressed concern to management that Olbermann has badly damaged MSNBC’s reputation for independence."
Uh, right..."reputation for independence." How brain dead are the "several of NBC's front-line stars"? Do they actually BELIEVE that MSDNC has this reputation, or is this part of the liberal media spin machine? Any group that lies to themselves this much deserves to lose customers (viewers).