Monday, September 8, 2008

MSNBC - No anchor chair for you, Olby

MSNBC has announced that Olbermann and Mathews will not be in anchor roles for the up-coming debates and election night coverage. Having these two dorky guys in anchor positions was an experiment of sorts (gee, I wonder who the nitwit was who thought this was a good idea?) and now that the convention ratings are in they've been demoted to "analysts." For now, their dopey MSNBC shows will remain on air.

From the NYT "MSNBC Takes Incendiary Hosts From Anchor Seat":

Executives at the channel’s parent company, NBC Universal, had high hopes for MSNBC’s coverage of the political conventions. Instead, the coverage frequently descended into on-air squabbles between the anchors, embarrassing some workers at NBC’s news division, and quite possibly alienating viewers. Although MSNBC nearly doubled its total audience compared with the 2004 conventions, its competitive position did not improve, as it remained in last place among the broadcast and cable news networks.

Perhaps there are consequences for outrageous sexist behavior in media.

David Gregory will take over as anchor for the debates and election night coverage.

2 comments:

The Viscount LaCarte said...

I think Matthews is nuts (though often entertaining and sometimes holds their feet to the fire) and was clearly anti-Hillary, though I think he just couldn't stand her and it wasn't sexism.

I think Keith Olbermann is great. I can understand why they didn't want him as anchor - he's clearly partisan, but with the all the idiot conservative pundits on the airwaves his Countdown is a breath of fresh air.

Sarah is losing some of her shine, isn't she?

Eidin said...

I think Olby should have stuck to sports. Hopefully, that door will still be open to him when he completely flames out at MSNBC.