This evening my friend Keith Olbermann announced that he is leaving MSNBC and that Countdown will end this week. His departure will be a great disappoint for millions of viewers but I have little doubt that Keith will continue his unique brand of commentary and coverage in a different forum. I will personally miss our conversations on and off the program. Keith has been a unique voice in our society and I trust that we have not heard the last of that voice on myriad of issues confronting this nation.
I have known and worked with Keith since the 1990s and his first news show, The Big Show with Keith Olbermann. He has held a number of positions on different networks — all with equal success. The public has always connected with Keith’s wit and often wacky style. He is one of the smartest individuals I have ever known. He also genuinely cares about the issues addressed on his show.
In an age of blow-dried, robotic anchors, Keith gave the public something different and magnetic. He invented his own genre in news — a style later mimicked by others in their own programs.
Keith’s career has always been as unpredictable as his style. The public has always been drawn to him by his refusal to compromise and his fierce independence. Those characteristics that are so central to his success with viewers often led to conflicts with his respective networks. He is the ultimate lone wolf in an industry known for its pack mentality.
There are certain classics in American culture. They include the 67 Mustang, Wrigley Field, and every John Wayne film. For many news junkies, they also include Keith Olbermann. Intense, irreverent and insightful, Keith is unique. For that reason, his fans and friends will not allow him to be gone from the airways for long.
Thanks, Keith, and Godspeed.
Jonathan Turley
I thought that I would pass this one on,WHAT?????????????
Fox’s Briggs: Maybe Olbermann Left Because He Was “Tired Of Not Beating” O’Reilly
http://mediamatters.org/mmtv/201101220004
” A loose cannon that could not be controlled”
I think Rage Against the Machine said it best.
Fuck you I won’t do you tell me
Comin in the name of
Some of those that were enforcers are the same that burn crosses
Now you do what that told ya
Now you do what that told ya
Now you do what that told ya
FUCK YOU I WON”T DO WHAT YOU TELL ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
SwM,
Thanks for the update … I think Keith Olbermann is playing this new hand with a great deal of skill.
http://www.tmz.com/ Some updated information.
I agree with the earlier comments that Olbermann’s return to television on Fox News is not as unlikely at it first seems.
Few have commented on the role of Countdown in advancing specific voices like JT’s. What will happen to those voices, and to the public visibility of our host?
Napolitano’s Freedom Watch – particularly as it relates to discussions of civil liberties – may be a complementary outlet for JT’s articulate constitutional voice.
bdaman
and yet hannity, o’rielly, or beck can only dream of having spongebob squarepants’ numbers.
who lives in a pineapple under the sea?
I had a hunch that Griffin would be replaced by Comcast, and negotiating Keith’s termination would be his parting gift to the new Overlords.
Thank you Professor Turley for your kind and wise comments, both now & on Countdown. If only there were a Nobel for Law like Paul Krugman has for Economics, ah well maybe the Supremes will do.
Mr Turley I know you via Keith and always found you an enlightening listen while also being amused and finding a bit of zen by the calm smooth talk.
This was a real nice text of tribute to a friend (this reads like friendship) I think the whole thing is sad, I loose some great news coverage from what goes on in America. I will keep getting the Maddow podcast (my only option to watch KO and her)
I asked a friend for a good news source to follow the ’08 election and since 7th october that year i follow him.
Great reporting, analysis, humour, and a man with a heart of gold (all he did he did with compassion and an aim for truth)
I know he’ll be back and greater than ever!
Hope I get to be on that ride with him.
Keith: A massive hug from a fan in Norway
Slarti:
To your point anon nurse put the link to this story on another thread:
“most recently in November after he revealed that he had made donations to several Democratic candidates in 2010 — one of them, coincidentally, was Representative Gabrielle Giffords, who has been the subject of many of his recent shows after being shot in an assassination attempt.”
http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/21/olbermann-hosts-last-countdown-on-msnbc/?hp
ID:
I also find matthews hard to watch,like you said he asks a guest a question then talks over his guest and “showers” his guest,I’m surprised that wearing a rain coat and goggless is not a requirement when his guest appear on his show.
But I will say this sometimes he catches his guest being less than candid and you see his eyes light up and the fire flows from his mouth.
I think Rachel, like every good protege, has surpassed her mentor (I’d like to see Rachel in Tim Russert’s chair eventually – I think she’s the best interviewer on TV right now) and that Keith leaving MSNBC is a good thing (for Keith, anyway…). I wouldn’t be surprised if Representative Giffords’ shoot played a large role in his decision to move on (I suspect Keith felt that his on-air persona wasn’t helping the environment).
Bdaman,
Have you scheduled a sleep test yet?
Cenk Uygur, CM, Lawrence O’Donnell, RM and Big Ed is to be the lineup.
O’Donnell needs to stop hollering at his guests. If he wants to holler he should do special comments; hollering at unresponsive guests just makes him look unprofessional, as if he can’t make the point any other way.
“yet I find Rachel’s approach vastly less combative, and therefore, much better.”
Indeed.
With heavy heart, I will continue to watch MSNBC via satellite receiver for as long as Rachel Maddow is there.
I find Rachel has no less political insight and no less ability to sort out the absurd from the absurd than Olberman, yet I find Rachel’s approach vastly less combative, and therefore, much better.
Thank you Octavia
I will miss Keith. I’ve been watching him for years, even on his earlier show on MSNBC. What I don’t understand is why MSNBC keeps Matthews. If Matthews numbers are as reported a above, he’s the lowest. Why would they give Matthews two one hour slots and move Ed Schulz [who scores 60K more readers] to 10PM? The last time I watched Matthews he couldn’t remember the names of his guests, kept asking them questions and not let them answer, answering his own questions himself and mispronounced a multisyllabic word most high school sophomores would know.
I know Keith will land somewhere. Rachel’s in an odd position as I always thought of her as a protege of Keith’s.
29,879 as of now on KO at Huffington Post. I woulde imagine that this story will set a record for comments in their history.I am only guessing that.Are mabye any blog for that matter.
Olbermann’s MSNBC Exit Was Weeks in the Making
By BILL CARTER
http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/22/olbermanns-msnbc-exit-was-weeks-in-the-making/?hp
Excerpt:
On Thursday, NBC’s news division staged an elaborate presentation for advertisers, seeking to sell commercial time in NBC’s news programs over the next year. All the members of MSNBC’s prime-time lineup spoke at the lunch with one exception: Keith Olbermann, the network’s biggest star.
For the last several weeks, Mr. Olbermann and the network have been in negotiations to end his successful run on MSNBC, according to executives involved in the talks who requested anonymity because the talks were confidential. The deal was completed on Friday, and Mr. Olbermann made the announcement on his final “Countdown” hours later.
Friday’s separation agreement between MSNBC and Mr. Olbermann includes restrictions on when he can next lead a television show and when he can give interviews about the decision to end his association with the news channel.
The executives involved in the discussions confirmed that the deal carries limitations for Mr. Olbermann in terms of when he can next work on television, though he will be able to take a job in radio or on any forum on the Internet. The deal also prohibits the host from commenting publicly on the deal, the executives confirmed.
Dear Mr. Turley, What a wonderful piece about Mr. Olbermann.
You are so right when you say his type of commentary is rare
these days. Mr. Olbermann led the way with compassion, wit,
a wry sense of humor that is badly needed and will be sorely missed. I am sure that a great talent like his will not be off the
airwaves for long. He was the voice of compassion, honesty &
deep passion for people who have no voice.
Bdaman:
as usual you have ferreted out the pertinent information.
You are this blog’s private “dick” :).