As NewsBusters reported Wednesday, Keith Olbermann's return performance ratings bounce was less than spectacular at a 35 percent increase over his pre-suspension show.
In his second night back, the "Countdown" host lost almost 40 percent of this gain:
"Think of a caged rat, a cornered rat. What does a cornered rat do? It instinctively goes for the jugular. That's where the media are going right now," following the November 2 elections, NewsBusters publisher Brent Bozell told Ernest Istook in a radio interview.
The Media Research Center founder appeared by telephone on the November 11 edition of Bill Bennett's Morning in America, where Istook was substitute hosting.
[Link to audio below page break]
Since Republicans won control of the House of Representatives last week, MSNBC host Keith Olbermann has recited at the end of his Countdown show a new sign-off each night he has hosted noting the number of days since the GOP victory and mocking Speaker-designate John Boehner by sarcastically asking, "Where are the jobs?" At the end of Wednesday’s Countdown, he ended the show: "That's November 10th, seven days since the Republicans took control of the House. Mr. Boehner, where are the jobs? I'm Keith Olbermann. Good night and good luck."
Back in February 2006, Olbermann began mocking President Bush by ending his show with the number of days since Bush’s speech on the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln declaring an end to major combat operations in Iraq - referred to by Olbermann as declaring "mission accomplished." Last May, after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill had lasted more than a month, the MSNBC host temporarily stopped referring to "mission accomplished" in Iraq as he turned his attention to the number of days since the oil spill occurred, but he soon brought back the reference to Iraq and added Afghanistan into the mix. Wednesday, October 20, was the last day Olbermann used this version of the sign off:
That’s October 20th. It’s the 2,729th day since President Bush declared mission accomplished in Iraq, the 2,318th day since he declared victory in Afghanistan, and the 184th day of the Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf. I’m Keith Olbermann, leave a message after the beep. Good night and good luck.
With all the hype about Keith Olbermann's brief suspension and his triumphant return to MSNBC Tuesday, one would have expected his ratings to explode as first-time viewers tuned in to see what all the fuss was about.
When the dust settled, the "Countdown" host's total viewers rose 35 percent from last Thursday's show before the controversy began, but most embarrassingly, Rachel Maddow actually bested the most conceited man on television in the all important 25-54 year-old demographic (via Steve Krakauer):
Keith Olbermann on Tuesday almost dislocated his shoulder patting himself on the back for all the attention he got after being suspended by NBC last Friday.
Like a kindergartner bragging to his parents about the fabulous day he had in school, the "Countdown" host told his viewers how many people signed a petition for his return, the number of tweets he received, and the various television programs that wanted to interview him (video follows with transcript and commentary):
The Hill is reporting that America's only admitted socialist member of Congress on Tuesday said he would seek to block the merger of Comcast with NBC as a result of Keith Olbermann's suspension last week (h/t NBer Beukeboom):
Keith Olbermann on Monday issued a brief written statement to his viewers concerning his recent two-day suspension for violating NBC's policy regarding political contributions.
As NewsBusters readers likely suspect, the man with the largest ego on television is playing this episode for all it's worth (h/t Hot Air):
It appears NBC management feels a two day suspension is all Keith Olbermann should get for violating company policy regarding political donations.
MSNBC's Phil Griffin issued the following press release moments ago (h/t NB reader Keith Hanson):
The Baltimore Sun's media critic is still fuming about MSNBC's pathetic coverage on election night.
In his piece published Saturday, David Zurawik called the cable news network a "liberal prep school" while claiming the behavior of folks like Rachel Maddow, Chris Matthews, Lawrence O'Donnell, and Keith Olbermann was "so egregious" that the "entire realm of TV journalism was diminished in the public mind":
Would you seek advice on how to save your marriage from John Edwards? Or how about a teenage girl turning to Paris Hilton for suggestions on how to maintain her purity? If you think those ideas seem silly then take a look at what the recently suspended MSNBC Countdown host is claiming in a New York Times Q&A interview conducted by Deborah Solomon. Keith Olbermann is asserting that Vice President Joe Biden asked him for anger management advice. I kid you not. Here is the perpetually outraged Olbermann making his claim:
Is it fair to describe you as the first left winger to express anger as a television host? Fury used to be the province of right wingers, until that day in 2006 when you delivered a tirade against Donald Rumsfeld.
I once had a conversation with the man who is now the vice president when he was still in the Senate, who asked me for advice about how to turn anger into righteous inspiration.
Joe Biden took you to lunch to ask you for tips on getting angry?
He said, ‘‘I just come across like I’m angry and out of control, and you seem to focus it and make it look useful and expressive.’’
Rachel Maddow's claim that MSNBC is "not a political operation" was thoroughly debunked Sunday by the conservative website Johnny Dollar's Place.
As NewsBusters previously reported, Maddow on Friday defended Keith Olbermann's suspension for violating NBC's campaign finance rules by attacking Fox News hosts for raising money for Republicans. In the segment, she argued that aside from the "Countdown" host's indiscretion, MSNBCers don't engage in such activity.
As the following video marvelously demonstrates, Democrat candidates in recent months went on MSNBC programs such as "Hardball," "The Ed Show," "Countdown," and "The Rachel Maddow Show" to raise money for themselves (video follows with commentary):
Are they not properly vetting their liberals over at MSNBC?
As NewsBuster Lachlan Markay reported on Friday:
MSNBC suspended Keith Olbermann indefinitely … after news broke that he had given the maximum allowable contribution to three Democrats without disclosing it to his employers.
With Olbermann out, MSNBC needed a fill-in, so in steps Chris Hayes, editor of the liberal magazine, The Nation. MSNBC pegged Hayes to fill in for the suspended Countdown host on Friday. His gig was short-lived however.
Several hours after the announcement, Hayes had been dropped. (h/t Weasel Zippers)
Why?
For a series of donations to Democratic campaigns in recent years.