Anderson who? How an also-ran anchor became the caustic king of cable news

So why was this story featured front and center early this morning but off the front pages by noon today? Is Olbermann pissed you caught him slamming his employers again? Or is it because he confirms the KarmaBites blog business in this interview? Whatever the reason, this has got to be one of the most ungracious, self-serving interviews I've ever seen out of him and that's really saying something since he has a long history of slamming fellow employees and management types.

Alison, the truly remarkable thing is how little time it took for a critic of Olbermann to dream up two conspiracy theories concerning the PLACEMENT of the article!

-Dorrie

It's no longer on the front page of this website, a story from 11/30 is featured instead. It's a legitimate question apparently without an answer.

Olbermann is still on the front page. I don't think you people realize that Radar's front page billboard oscillates between two stories. If you refresh, you'll see that Olbermann appears as the main feature--or, if you just wait 3 god-damned seconds for the billboard to switch back before hatching your conspiracy theories. Allison, let me guess: you're a falafel fetishist, aren't you?

Loved this piece, especially slapping that
big mouth O'Reilly! But, NO, I could never confuse
"Malmedy" for anything and it just shows how shallow
the cretin really is.
Tobey

No, I can't stand O'Reilly. And I never watch Fox. But Olbermann is as egotistical, boorish, overbearing, and every bit as self-serving as Bill O'Reilly is. His remarks here about Abrams were really beyond the pale. Isn't he supposed to be renegotiating a new contract? And what does he do? Take swings at management. He's a real prince.

And I'm just saying that every single time I've gone to Radar today, this story hasn't been on the front page, it was there first thign this morning and hasn't been there since and I've visited several times to check. When I click on Features and click on Q&A, the one from last week comes up, not this one, which I had to go search for, from a link at ICN.

Alison, I just went to Radar's front page, and Discount is right: their top story blinks back and forth between Olbermann and a big photo of a diamond. Be careful you don't start acting like Bill-o, making up stories out of thin air! -Dorrie

Alison, you say Olbermann "confirms the KarmaBites blog business in this interview." No, he does not. He confirms that he knows it exists, but he also states flatly that there's no truth to it. You'll note that he says he hasn't addressed it previously because "first off, I stick to truth."

You also say "this has got to be one of the most ungracious, self-serving interviews I've ever seen out of him and that's really saying something since he has a long history of slamming fellow employees and management types." What did he say exactly that was so "ungracious and self-serving" and consisted of "slamming fellow employees and management types"? He said, when asked why Dan Abrams had said his show "could become a model for the newscast of the future," "I don't know what Dan has to do with it frankly. We've never had a conversation about the direction of the show." He also said "we rarely interact." How does that constitute "slamming" Abrams? Sounds to me like he was just making a factual statement. It was the reporter who then said "What the hell is Abrams doing giving quotes about you to everyone from the Washington Post to the LA Times, then?" to which he said "You got me. No, really..." Sounds like he said that more in humor than in hostility (and you'll note HE isn't the one who used the phrase "What the hell is he doing..."?).

Then again, those who are looking for any possible excuse to smear Keith Olbermann (because they don't like his work) typically engage in the kind of distortion of his words in which you just engaged. Sorry. Trying to tar him with the old and very outdated brush of "He can't get along with his employers" won't work. Right now Keith's employers appear very happy with him--just as happy as his viewers are. And for good reason.

I agree with Alison. Olbermann takes shots here at Abrams and every other media blog out there has agreed with that assessment. Abrams has been really complimentary towards Olbermann and this is how Olbermann repays him, by dismissing him, saying that Abrams is only in charge of the daytime side of MSNBC. Even if that is true, it's not how you win friends in the workplace.

And re the comments about his brush with the tabloids earlier this year, read very carefully. He doesn't deny it. Instead he launches into questions about why is this news and the sourcing of it from a blog. Apparently he wants to give interviews to blogs like this one but doesn't want anyone to take what is said on them seriously. He also uses the old-school debate technique of asking questions to get away from answering the question posed.

Come on, this is a man who pitched a fit when Fox News left off an "n" on his name. Why in God's name do you think he didn't go on TV from Day 1 and deny this? It's his bully pulpit after all. Because he couldn't. But good for Radar for having the balls to ask the question.

I'm "tarring" Olbermann? No, Olbermann is doing that himself. No review of ancient history is necessary. This year alone he's managed to say less than complimentary things about Rita Cosby, Tucker Carlson, and Dan Abrams in at least three different venues other than this one, including GQ, the NY Post, Jossip, and now Radar-on-Line. You don't call that a pattern? Even if nothing else existed on his prior pattern of doing this elsewhere (and there's a long history of it), this alone would tell me all I needed to know about Olbermann's "hooray for me and to hell with everyone else" attitude. You may find it charming, I don't. And I'm guessing his employes won't either.

Radar, I'm sorry that you had to interview this egotistical bag of wind, but I admire the balls it took to do it. And it was great that you finally put Karma's blog right in his smug face. Of course, you didn't get an answer, just an unintelligible tap-dance about "truth" and "journalism" and "legally true," not to mention "doing anonymous stories about myself." How can one do anonymous stories about one's self? And didn't he essentially say that what was said on Karma's blog is true? He sounds like Bill Clinton (no offense to you, Bubba) parsing the word "is." What a tool. He's the Sideshow Bob of newsreaders, not the next Murrow.

Cowards pretend to be better people.
-q

To "Mandy" and "Alison," who are probably both the same person: Olbermann takes NO shots here at all, at anyone. Olbermann is not "dismissing" him, he is simply stating a fact, which you are twisting and distorting into a "dis." He doesn't have to lie about the structure of MSNBC in order to "win friends in the workplace"--I'm sure he does that just fine without any help from you. And I did read the comments about his brush with the tabloids "very carefully"--and he DOES deny the truth of what was said. He said "First off, I deal with truth." What more do you need? THEN he questions the news value of anything coming anonymously from a blog, because he is pointing out how poorly sourced it was for the New York Post to publish it at all. And he is right! Yes, he wants to give interviews to blogs like this one--because the authors are not anonymous and don't hide behind a cloak of secrecy. In other words, they act like journalists, not gossipmongers who won't stand behind what they say about someone. Nowhere here does he ask a question "to get away from answering the question posed," but rather to shed a light on the situation. And he didn't "pitch a fit" when Fox News left off an "n" on his name, he LAUGHED--although it sure wasn't professional journalism from Fox to misspell his name! The reason Olbermann didn't "go on TV from Day 1 and deny this" is because there was no reason to until someone asked him about it; it was all stuff and nonsense from an anonymous source, and if you address that kind of garbage when you don't absolutely have to, all it does is lend it the credibility it does not deserve. Olbermann is not "tarring" himself at all. He's suffered not one whit for what he's said about Rita Cosby (probably because she IS stupid, and MSNBC agrees with him on that point!), and he's said nothing unflattering about Tucker Carlson or Dan Abrams at all (in fact, he's stuck up for Tucker sometimes!) And Karma's blog is the very definition of "doing anonymous stories about myself" (because that is what THAT loser is doing), so it deserves no credence whatsoever. Olbermann did NOT "essentially say that what was said on Karma's blog is true"--he said right off: "I deal in truth." In other words, he hasn't addressed it before because HE DEALS IN TRUTH! "Alison" and "Mandy" are the "Sideshow Bobs" of commenters: their goal is obviously to post as many reinforcements of lies about Keith Olbermann as possible in order to do whatever they can to drip poison into the atmosphere at the time of his contract renegotiations. No doubt they are either Karma's "friends" (such as she has), Olbermann Watch acolytes, or both. They might as well forget it; Olbermann's show is a hit and he's not going anywhere. I hope he re-signs with MSNBC for a figure that gives them heart attacks.

Alrighty then there poster with the long name. You seem to have very strong feelings about Olbermann. Are you the president of his fan club? Or some deluded fanatical fan who believes they "know" him? Because I don't know how you can say for sure that this hasn't damaged him, the insulting of his coworkers, unless you are either him or you work with him. So which is it?

And sorry to burst your bubble or impose upon your rather uhm, paranoid(?) ramblings but I'm one person here and one person only. It's not my fault if more than one person agrees with me. Funny, I don't really see anyone agreeing with you however.

And p.s., I don't have to "drip poison into the atmosphere at the time of his contract renegotiations", because as you can see clearly see from the interview above, Olbermann is perfectly able to do that all by himself.

In support of KarmaBitesTheBigOne, I agree with her observation regarding the karmabites1 blog. Olbermann acknowledges the site but admits to nothing.

I cannot, in all honesty, comment upon Keith's purported dismissal of his fellow employees since I personally know none of the members involved, nor the work environment of MSNBC itself. It would be unfair to take sides either way with such a paucity of information.

There is no denying (although some of you have tried) that this interview is part of an ongoing pattern Olbermann has of saying absolutely nothing complimentary about either his coworkers or his network management. There is also no arguing that this pattern of non-complimentary statements about co-workers and management exists with Olbermann all the way back to his ESPN days. Perhaps Olbermann needs to ask himself why he believes he's always right and everyone else is always wrong. That seems to be an ongoing issue with him. There is also no denying that if you or I said this kind of thing about a prominent member of management at our companies, there would be hell to pay for it. I don't imagine it's any different at Olbermann's workplace than it is at any other workplace across this nation, or in this World for that matter. Although ahem, some of you seem to have create an alternative universe in which anything Olbermann says or does is just hunky dory and not questionable or actionable.

And the statement "legally true" says it all. He couldn't sue over anything said about him because it was in fact true, and he admits here it was "legally true". But it's fun watching him, very cleverly, parse his language very carefully to create doubt. Watch the technique of asking more questions to avoid having to answer the original question that was posed to him. It was an especially nice touch trying to challenge the validity of sourcing anything that originally came from a website but someone needs to remind KO that this interview was going to be posted on a website and that he himself until recently had his own blog. So does that mean that neither this interview or anything he ever posted on his blog were journalistically valid? Nice try but no cigar. Again, I guess it's only "journalistically valid" if he tells us it is and that all gossip about him should be considered "not journalistically valid" while any gossip he repeats is. Also, he regularly reports gossip sourced from tabloids and in fact, did it on last night's show,citing a British tabloid as a source. Again, I guess it's only untrue when it's about him and it's all true when it's not.

My special favorite statement in this interview however remains his assertion that he doesn't do anonymous stories about himself. I guess even he isn't that self-absorbed but he fails to share with us how exactly someone could do an anonymous story on themself.

This inteview is so full of spin I'm surprised he doesn't put down the title "whirling dervish" as an occupation on his income taxes.

If you find Olbermann so unbearable, then why watch him and "Countdown," and, furthermore, take the time out to track down interviews and then post negative commentary on them? (Personally, I'd like to know where you find the time.) I cannot understand the logic of many anti-Olbermann posters and bloggers who know so much more than the purported "superfans." I'd also like to understand the motives behind such actions as well.

Uh, motive? I read Radar, Huffington Post, Inside Cable, TVNewser, and Gawker daily. That's it. It represents at most 15 minutes of my day. And how could I miss Countdown, it's my favorite Comedy show.

Alison--comedy? He takes himself too seriously (especially in those "special comments" for it to be comedy. Try drama, since he's such a drama queen. Or murder mystery, since it's murder to try to watch it.

Um, BlueVelvet, before you go attacking Alison, why don't you ask KarmaBitestheBigOne how she finds the time to write such interminably long commentaries about Olbermann?

Perhaps the Olbermann-fanatics might be interested in seeing this editoral about Olbermann's comments regarding Dan Abrams which came from Huffington Post, hardly a bastion of right-wing thinking. Apparently I am not alone in my assessment that Olbermann was dismissive of Abrams, to put it mildly:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eat-the-press/2006/12/04/fightin-words-from-keith_e_35516.html

Fightin' Words From Keith Olbermann With Diss On Bossman Abrams

What is Keith Olbermann thinking? As the ratings of his show as well as those of his network are on the climb, and the middle of contract negotiations, he goes on the record with Radar dissing his boss, MSNBC General Manager Dan Abrams. See how Olbermann seems to bristle (and go pointedly off-topic) in response to questioning by Tyler Gray:

RADAR: Dan Abrams said recently that your program "could become a model for the newscast of the future." Are you a role model?

OLBERMANN: I don't know what Dan has to do with it frankly. We've never had a conversation about the direction of the show.

RADAR: He's actually the--

OLBERMANN: The general manager [of MSNBC], right, but we rarely interact. As far as I know he works on dayside programming. Phil Griffin runs the network. He is the vice president of NBC [News] and my original producer in television.

RADAR: What the hell is Abrams doing giving quotes about you to everyone from the Washington Post to the LA Times, then?

OLBERMANN: You got me.

Wow. "As far as I know he works on dayside programming?" Olbermann must not read the papers, since they all detailed Abrams' sweeping prime-time shakeup back in July, which included shelving Rita Cosby: Live & Direct, moving Tucker Carlson to the 4 and 6 pm slot, and rocking the doc-bloc in the 10 - midnight slot. This left Olbermann, Chris Matthews and Joe Scarborough in place in the prime time, building on the ratings success of Matthews and Olbermann (which Abrams made a point of noting with praise at the time)(and which Scarborough's ratings are reflecting). Meanwhile, it's working: Under Abrams, MSNBC's ratings are climbing steadily, not only for Olbermann but across the board. This is not to say that Phil Griffin doesn't share in responsibility for MSNBC's progress; as the NBC Senior VP overseeing the network, his role is to collaborate with Abrams on the network's progress. But Griffin is big-picture, and Abrams is the day-to-day manager of almost 600 employees — including Olbermann, whether he likes it or not. He's the guy sending memos and getting quoted, particularly saying nice things in articles about Keith Olbermann. It is churlish — not to mention highly unprofessional — that Olbermann isn't doing the same.

None of the responses answered my question, sorry.

If you find Olbermann so unbearable, then why watch him and "Countdown," and, furthermore, take the time out to track down interviews and then post negative commentary on them?

Quoting from a left-wing blog and stating that "Countdown" is a comedy is hardly logical rebuttal.

Quanlin, I seem to remember when you were an Olbermann fan, so I am amused by your posts here.

Here's another industry blog that most certainly also viewed Olbermann's remarks as being negative towards Abrams. FTVLive.com:

"Hey Dan Abrams...Thanks for nothing.
It looks like Keith Olbermann wants all the credit for his "ratings success." He sat down with Radar and he wants to you know that Dan Abrams has had nothing to do with his show.

RADAR: Dan Abrams said recently that your program "could become a model for the newscast of the future." Are you a role model?

KEITH OLBERMANN: I don't know what Dan has to do with it frankly. We've never had a conversation about the direction of the show.

But Olbermann doesn't stop there.

Radar: He's actually the—

Olbermann: The general manager [of MSNBC], right, but we rarely interact. As far as I know he works on dayside programming. Phil Griffin runs the network. He is the vice president of NBC [News] and my original producer in television.

Radar: What the hell is Abrams doing giving quotes about you to everyone from the Washington Post to the LA Times, then?

Olbermann: You got me. No, really, it's an awfully tough tightrope to walk here, and you get people who are newscasters who can't do any of the humor. And then there are people who are humorists who can't do any of the news. This is a problem. I've never had a problem going from one to the other. For me it's the skill that I've always brought to the table. I did it at SportsCenter. First, I did it for MSNBC. And, frankly, I did it for college radio. The idea is: Rarely do you go an entire hour when life is one tone, so why should you do an entire newscast that, in an hour of time, is all the same? There are occasions, like 9/11, when, yes, it is all one tone until further notice. But it's not like that a lot, thank goodness.

Gee Keith --- Way to take one for the team...

Of course if Olbermann's ratings start to tank, you can bet that Abrams will get all the credit."

That makes FTV, Inside Cable News, Eat the Press at Huffington Post, Gawker, Jossip, and TVNewser, industry blogs or blogs with industry connections who all believe he was insulting Abrams.

Oh, and why do I continue to watch Olbermann? Because it's a train wreck, why else?

Brandon, go back to olbermannwatch.com where you belong.

"Quanlin", who are you to point fingers while all this time you're pretending to be someone else? Can't you argue your case honestly, with viewpoints and noms de plume of your very own?
-q

BlueVelvet--I was a huge Olbermann fan, but I finally caught on to his hypocrisy and it makes me sick. I can hardly stand to look at the man anymore. I can't believe it took me so long to get wise to him--I'm usually much more perceptive--but everyone has their weaknesses, I guess. Um, "_q_," what is your gripe? And, incidentally, cowards don't tell the truth because they're too concerned about other peoples' opinion of them. Ring true?

Quanlin, don't you have a site devoted to Olbermann? It's pretty weird hearing you attack him all of a sudden.

As for the article, he definitely avoided the Karma question and was an ass concerning Abrams.

_q is the real quanlin, not sure it the Quanlin here is using her name on purose or accidently, but if they ever searched for KO they know her name and site.

Only the most fervent of the obsessed Olbermann fantical fans could read this interview and come away with the conclusion he wasn't a) insulting Abrams and b) didn't totally admit to the Karma thing. But welcome to the world of the Olbyloons where conspiracy theories run rampant and common sense is in all too short supply. No wonder they're taken in by him. They're gulliable, not intelligent in the least, and not terribly discerning or they wouldn't be mistaking his Special Comments for anything other than what they are, ratings gimmicks, the same things he swears he doesn't do or would never do to get ratings. Seriously, at some point don't you just get totally sick and tired of having to invent excuses for him to explain away his asshole behaviors? Isn't it exhausting having to try and interpret and spin what you think he means even when you know he meant exactly what he said but you're afraid someone will figure out he's really an egotistical, no-talented asshole who despite his protests to the contrary absolutely has a liberal bias? Isn't it tiring and rather disappointing to see him repeating his bad behaviors for the entire world to see and then knowing you're going to have to go around the internet and clean up behind him? I don't know, he seems like a lot of work for me and what's your payout exactly? what's he doing for you--all 3 of you?

Thank you Chris. You are correct.
-q

Brandon, I happen to enjoy intelligent, fact-based news reporting. I noticed that most of the anti-Olbermann posts on this board revolve around politics, a subject I admit to having little interest in. You may attempt to paint me with a liberal brush, but you would be in error. As for the karmabites1 issue, Olbermann's private life has no impact on either my viewing habits, or how I conduct my personal life, or what my attitude is towards men/women/relationships. I prefer to live in the real world, thank you.

Rumors printed on a blog mean nothing at all. I could start a blog about how great in bed he was and I bet you I could get media coverage too. In fact, I think I will create one just to show you that it can be done.

Alison=Karma. It never ends does it??
Hey he gave you a TIE- what else do you want.
You get more riled the more Keith gains popularity.
zzzzzzzzzzz.

LOL. I'm been happily married for 10 years and have 2 kids. I assure you I'm not Karma! Or a Republican operative for that matter.

I've made it something of a hobby to keep an eye on the Olbermann-fans or as they are more commonly known, "Olbyloons" (think lunatics). Their favorite claim when Olbermann is criticized is to say that it's all one disgruntled anti-Olbermann type posing as many different people all over the internet. You see, it's simply beyond their comprehension that so many people could so thoroughly dislike him. They seem to overlook the fact that on any given night, O'Reilly has about 2 million more viewers than Olbermann will ever have, yet they seem to think that if anyone says anything negative about Olbermann, it must be part of some conspiracy. Hell, you can see their logic on full display here-they don't think that Olbermann was insulting Abrams when every media blog on the internet most certainly thought so, even the left-leaning Huffington Post! I guess it's never occured to them that it's because of interviews just like this one that Olbermann is so thoroughly and roundly despised, and that's just by his coworkers.

Chris, thank you for your attempt at clarification, but you've got it backwards. I don't know who this -q person is, but he or she must have a really big ego to think they'd be "recognized" by the use of one initial. Seriously, I think the website is a good piece of work, but I'm not that impressed with myself!

Incidentally, Andrea, the blog is hilarious. But it's obviously a fake for 2 reasons: 1. he'd never tip generously, and 2. he'd never satisfy a woman in bed. In any way. The word about that was out long before anything was blogged or published.

It's funny that the Olbermann haters call the people who support him here "Olbyloons," yet they're the ones who steal the names of "known" Olbermann fans/webmasters with which to post hateful comments about him both from a journalistic and a personal standpoint, and twist his commentaries in the above article to mean something they don't. (For example, they claim he is saying that what has been said about him is "legally true" when he says no such thing; in fact, he says first, and explicitly, that he hasn't addressed it before because he deals in TRUTH. He says only theoretically that legal truth, aside from that issue, is not nearly enough to hang a news story on--but that's merely in theory, it's not in reference at all to what he's being asked about. But the Olbermann haters will twist it to mean whatever they want it to mean.)

Really, it's amazing how much the Olbermann haters hate Olbermann and his supporters, and the extent they will go to in order to smear, slam and lie about us. I really wish they would quit lying and find better things to do with their time.

Thank you for reading my blog, but I can assure you that I'm not this "Alison" person. I could hardly have carried on such an affair were I, like Alison, "happily married for 10 years" . . . with "2 kids." And, more importantly, I would never, under any circumstances, use the term "LOL," unless it was in the context of "hey, how annoying are people who use the term 'LOL?'"

I rest my case. The post above is a perfect example of the depths of delusion of the Olbyloons. They think they themselves are famous and that everyone should "know" their names, as if they were as "famous" as they think their idol is. Please people. He couldn't get arrested if he jaywalked across the street. His show trails behind O'Reilly's most nights by some 2 million or more viewers, which is why the Olbyloons are forced to discus his demo ratings in which he only has 50% of O'Reilly's ratings and that's on his GOOD nights! But I have to say I'm very much amused watching the Olbyloons try to spin this Radar interview that Olbermann so obviously bungled in his direction. First there were the claims that he hadn't insulted Abrams. But I guess when even the liberal-leaning, Olby-loving Huffington Post called him an asshole, they had to give that claim up. Now they're trying to claim he denied the Karma thing when he admitted it. And you wonder why we call you loons? It's all here in black and white for everyone to see, from your paranoid-conspiracy theories to you're "we're as famous as he is" delusions of grandeur and of course, the "he didn't insult Abrams" bullshit. Try selling it elsewhere sisters. No one is buying it. Maybe you might be better served if you could get your hero Olbermann to stop giving interviews, maybe then he wouldn't shoot his mouth off and shoot himself in the foot like he did here.

See what I mean?

Seriously you can't make these loons up! And they never disappoint. They will rush to Olbermann's defense as if he was facing a firing squad and they and they alone could save him. Except it's Olbermann himself who is usually pulling the trigger as he did in this interview.

And poster above, did you really think you were "helping" Olby by creating your blog where you reinforce the idea he fucks his fans? With fans like you, the man doesn't need any enemies. But God bless you all for existing because the lot of you are a never ending source of bemusement and bewilderment for me.

And Alison, I wouldn't take the comment about the LOL too seriously. You see, I'm a student of the Olbyloons and these are women in their 40's and 50's who post happy-smiley faces everywhere they go and use icons usually only on seen on "my space". Their mentality approaches, but never quite reaches adolescent levels too. They've been known to rip other fans apart for merely suggesting Olbermann was anything less than perfect. Humorless and full of themselves best describes them, well full of something anyway, just like Olbermann himself. Which brings me to the title of this interview, where the interviewer so aptly describes Olby as being full of hot air, which ought to tell you what their impression was of him after they interviewed him. But no, according to these fools, we're supposed to believe he didn't insult Abrams and he's one hell of a guy. Too bad it's Olbermann's own words here that hang him and it's his fans rampant stupidity, on full display here, that shows them to be what they are too.

Go Brandon! I can't believe that I was an Olber-dupe for so long, believing that he was wonderful when he's just a self-important, delusional hypocrite. And the Olberlovers hate more than anyone else. They will defend their man all over the Internet, even to resorting to threats, lies, and impersonation. And they've tried worse. I'm so relieved that I wised up and broke free of their craziness. It began to scare me. I feel like a new person now.

How sad that someone by the name of "Alison" (etc.) has so much time to criticize Olbermann supporters as well as Olbermann himself of course.
"Alison" states: "Uh, motive? I read Radar, Huffington Post, Inside Cable, TVNewser, and Gawker daily. That's it. It represents at most 15 minutes of my day. And how could I miss Countdown, it's my favorite Comedy show."
There are several comments by "Alison" which would have taken more than a few minutes to post. ALL of the blog perusing "she" claims to be doing in "at most 15 minutes," is simply not logistically possible.
Yeah sure. Troll away. There is no credibility to any of these comments. I have not read ONE SINGLE comment posted on Radar that pertains to the actual CONTENT of Olbermann's MSNBC commentary. Additonally, there is no way on this planet he could ever be as big of a prick as O'Really. If it's a hatefest you want, O'Really is your man. How wonderful that so many morons have a psychotic need to hear the blatant bigotry and vicious hyperbole coming out of Mr. Bill's very hate- filled souless mind.
No, Olbermann has the uncanny ability to speak the truth, not throw out trashmouth tidbits to anyone who will listen. However, the truth is unfortunately something which so many Americans are amazingly squeamish comprehending.
Slam Olbermann all you want, "Alison, etc.," the Truth will out. And I suppose sending a little white powder around to the aforementioned persons in this piece is just perfectly okay. What is it exactly that has Olbermann's critics all in a dither- that the man does not back down and has the unmitigated gall to defend himself? The wingnuts simply cannot handle that.

Of course I keep coming back to read the comments here because now I'm being attacked for posting here for merely stating my opinion. Well have at it, make fun of my husband, make fun of my marriage, make fun of my two kids, make fun of my use of the term LOL if you like. But it doesn't change the fact that Olbermann most certainly did insult Abrams here and all the frantic spinning and crazy accusations against anyone who dares to suggest otherwise won't change it. You want me to stop posting about Olbermann? Just admit as all the other media blogs and websites did that he was insulting Abrams. Go ahead and admit that he has a history of doing this to co-workers that dates back years. Go ahead. Admit it. You can't because you people are incapable of admitting he's anything less than perfect and that says more about you than it does about me. Do you have any idea how crazy you appear when you make accusations like we're all the same person or it's some sort or organized plot to discredit Olbermann? He's an egotistical, arrogant ass who goes around insulting coworkers and who thinks he's better than any and everyone else on air. AND THIS INTERVIEW PROVES THAT! And his fans are delusional, deranged, and obsessed to the point that they obviously don't have a life outside of him and his ratings-challenged show. AND YOUR POSTS HERE PROVE THAT! Good luck, you richly deserve one another.

Alison, nobody made fun of your husband, marriage, or children. You need to take a deep breath and calm down. Take a walk or something.

But that's exactly what the Olbyloon crew is doing here to with the use of "quotes" to question her and ridcule her. Don't wory Alison, it's the Olbyloons themselves who in posting their ridiculous statements here, as they desperately and frantically try to spin this article into something favorable for Olbermann that proves everything you and I and everyone else has said about him to be the truth. His fans are raving, foaming at the mouth lunatics who believe there is some sort of organized conspiracy to "defame" Olbermann, even when the words being said are direct quotations from his own big fat mouth. They can't wrap their mind around the fact that it's totally possible for more than one person to dislike this pompous, egotistical, biased bag of wind just like it's unbelievable to them that O'Reilly gets millions more viewers per night than Olbermann will ever get. But somehow, if anyone criticizes him, why it has to be the SAME person using aliases. I guess because their own little bad of lunatics is so small in number they think that the number of people who dislike Olbermann must be even smaller. Given the ratings numbers, it never occurs to these lunatics that millions of people choose to watch other cable news personalities every single night other than watching Olbermann and that no doubt these people also have internet access and are capable of posting their dislike and opposition and criticisim of Olbermann as we have done here. No, it's got to be a conspiracy. Just look at their desperate insistence that Olbermann wasn't insulting Abrams here as proof of the delusional, alternate-reality they live in. They would be pathetic if they weren't so obviously mentally ill. Maybe Olby can get a group rate with his shrink for him and his crazy fans.

Are you people NUTS. Did we or did we not all read the same article. Responding to a question about Dan Abrams is not the same thing as slamming him. I put this too anyone who doesn't like Olbermann. He is no different and no more full of himself then any other newscaster on any channel. It's such B.S. how we can make fun of him or criticize him for things that run ramped through out the cable news world. I watch MSNBC (some CNN, and very little Fox) a lot and I enjoy it because it does offer different views (Matthews,Scarboro,Carlson,Oberman) That's as close to balanced as you can expect from any news source.

I think -- and I'm pretty sure the Chicago Manual will back me up on this one -- that quotation marks, or "quotes," are used to indicate that the phrase one is using is not original but rather taken from someone else (in this case, Alison). Because not using quotation marks in such situations is called plagiarism (sort of like theft, but in written form).

Keith Olbermann has my undying gratitude and respect for being for several weeks virtually the only mainstream news guy to report seriously on the voting irregularities in Ohio and elsewhere in the 2004 election. Everybody else -- including NPR -- disparaged those who demanded an investigation as whiny internet conspiracy nuts. For the second time in a row the U.S. Presidential election had very possibly been hijacked, and except for Olbermann the news media couldn't care less. Lately Olbermann has been more or less the only guy on TV expressing sufficient outrage at the assault on the Constitution and essential civil liberties by the Bush Administration, Congress and now Newt Gingrich. Call him melodramatic or self-important; I'm just glad somebody realizes this is an issue worth thundering about. A lot of people thought Sam Adams and Patrick Henry were insufferable egotists too, but they got the job done. (I personally look forward to the day, perhaps not so far away, when I can drink Keith Olbermann beer.)

Nice spin there "Emily". Here is the use of the quotations in the post in question: "How sad that someone by the name of "Alison" (etc.) has so much time to criticize Olbermann supporters as well as Olbermann himself of course. "Alison" states: "

So where is the quotion in that sentence exactly pray tell? Now come off your high horse and admit that your fellow Olbyloon poster was not using the parenthesis there to indicate a quote, they were using it to mock the poster. Give it up, you can't make yourselves look good and you can't make Olbermann look good no matter how hard you try and spin it.

I highly suggest interested parties take a trip to the liberal-loving Huffington Post which called his behavior in this interview unprofessional. TVNewser which loves and adores Olbermann also thought it was an insult. So did FTVLive and Inside Cable News. So how is it that only the Olbyloons think it wasn't an insult? Oh, I forgot. You're not great at critical thinking and you're blinded by hero worship.

Readers should know that Olbermann has a long and storied history of insulting his coworkers, which stretches back decades.

And no worries about Olbermann ending up on a beer bottle. He'll be relegated to the junk pile of history as a has-been when he finally ticks MSNBC off as he has every other employer he has ever had. It's not a question of if, it's a question of when, as his employment history so vividly demonstrates.

http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/ch11/ch11_sec033.html

Brandon, you are absolutely right. Quotation marks -- and all forms of punctuation, for that matter -- are a liberal plot. As are flu shots, silica gel packets, the letters H-K (with the possible exception of J -- jury's still out on that one), the weather (not the kind Pat Robertson controls -- the other weather), and the space between one's genitals and anus (commonly referred to as the "taint"). Now you know what they know. Use this knowledge wisely, brave warrior.

No wonder Olbermann appeals to you, you're all mental midgets. Explain to me how the poster was using "" correctly in their post when referring to Alison. They weren't. You know it. I know it and anyone with half a brain knows it. And you now why they were using it. And your insistence otherwise with your pitiful little links to grammar style manuals show that you're just delusional and can't admit when you've insulted someone, and can't admit when you're wrong and you damn sure can't say you're sorry about anything, much as your hero Olbermann can't. I on the other hand have no difficult whatsoever in telling each and every one of you that you are full of shit and that Olbermann is also a big old air bag.

Here's a fun exercise for those who need proof of the dementia of the Olbermann-faithful fantical: Google the term "Olbermann fan forum" and see what shows up. Read all about these estrogen-challenged middle-aged women and read their explicit sex fantasies starring Olbermann. And that's just for starters. Read their fawning praise as they believe even farts from his corpulent frame sound like music to their ears. Read all about how they think he's the best thing in journalism that is or ever has been. Then go to Olbermannwatch.com and read the truth.

Thanks Brandon for your spirited defense of me. I know why they used the "" around my name and they can make fun of me all they like, it still doesn't change what Olbermann said in this interview. Too bad I can't post my family's picture here for you all to see but my husband Todd, my son Christian (9) and my daughter Kadie (7) say hello! It's so sad that Olbermann's fanatics don't have time to have a personal life, they're too busy inventing up bogus excuses for mocking someone they simply don't agree with. Or too busy trying to make something he said look good when it was anything but. That's a full-time job, batting clean-up behind him isn't it? You poor "dears" must be so tired of constantly having to do that and of course, trying to think up excuses for your own boorish behaviors. Sex fantasies with Olbermann? Ick. That's pathetic enough without me really having to add anything else to it and really, again tells me all I really need to know about how utterly pathetic their miserable little lives of desperation must be.

And P.S.: He still insulted Abrams in this interview. Just like he insulted Rita Cosby, Tucker Carlson and Joe Scarborough earlier in the year in other interviews. Just like he insulted coworkers going back to his ESPN days. You can't change what he said. You can't change what he's already said, all you can do is worry about what he'll say next because you know it's coming. He can't help himself from doing it. And that's why he's the train wreck that he is.

Again come on you guys. I cant be the only one who ever watches cable new. While Olbermann is not perfect I still say he is no worse and in some cases he may even be better then others who are on the air every day. For every Olbermannwatch.com site you find there is one aimed at the other side. All of us seam to pick on someone from the other side then attack them but yet we do not hold our own side to the same standards. I learned this awhile ago which is why I gave up the O'Reilly bashing bus a long time ago. If this is all they got on Olbermann then I say he is not half as bad as half of the people out there.

Again come on you guys. I cant be the only one who ever watches cable new. While Olbermann is not perfect I still say he is no worse and in some cases he may even be better then others who are on the air every day. For every Olbermannwatch.com site you find there is one aimed at the other side. All of us seam to pick on someone from the other side then attack them but yet we do not hold our own side to the same standards. I learned this awhile ago which is why I gave up the O'Reilly bashing bus a long time ago. If this is all they got on Olbermann then I say he is not half as bad as half of the people out there.

Again come on you guys. I cant be the only one who ever watches cable new. While Olbermann is not perfect I still say he is no worse and in some cases he may even be better then others who are on the air every day. For every Olbermannwatch.com site you find there is one aimed at the other side. All of us seam to pick on someone from the other side then attack them but yet we do not hold our own side to the same standards. I learned this awhile ago which is why I gave up the O'Reilly bashing bus a long time ago. If this is all they got on Olbermann then I say he is not half as bad as half of the people out there.

Wow. You people are very sensitive to imagined slights. The only thing I insulted was use of the term "LOL" (and I stand by my comments -- it's a childish phrase, so overused that it is now basically meaningless). The only thing I defended was appropriate punctuation. And "Alison," one might put your name in quotation marks to indicate the possibility that your name is not, in real life, "Alison." It's a technique often used on the Internets. The poster is merely saying, "you call yourself 'Alison,' so that's what I'll call you too."

My name is indeed Alison. See, I don't feel the need to make up fake names like some here. Just like I don't feel the need to make up false conclusions after reading this article. The truth usually speaks quite nicely for itself. As in this sentence, "Keith Olbermann continued his pattern of insulting his coworkers in his interview with Radaronline.com, capping off a year in which he hurled similar slights at Rita Cosby, Tucker Carlson, and Joe Scarborough."

Again still not half as bad as what anyone else on cable news is doing. Do you not watch O'Reilly or Limbaugh. If Olbermann's remarks can cause such uprise and false rages then where is the rage when these other people talk.

Example 1 -
O'Reilly uses his position as the centerpiece of Fox News' prime-time lineup to serially misinform his audiences, consistently skewing his presentation to advance conservative viewpoints (though he did admit on July 19, 2004, that Fox News "does tilt right").

Example 2-
Limbaugh regularly feeds his audience a diet of falsehoods, misstatements, distortions, invective, and childish put-downs in service of the conservative movement. During his long reign over the airwaves, Limbaugh has called abortion rights activists "feminazis", told an African-American caller to "take that bone out of your nose,"

Again still not half as bad as what anyone else on cable news is doing. Do you not watch O'Reilly or Limbaugh. If Olbermann's remarks can cause such uprise and false rages then where is the rage when these other people talk.

Example 1 -
O'Reilly uses his position as the centerpiece of Fox News' prime-time lineup to serially misinform his audiences, consistently skewing his presentation to advance conservative viewpoints (though he did admit on July 19, 2004, that Fox News "does tilt right").

Example 2-
Limbaugh regularly feeds his audience a diet of falsehoods, misstatements, distortions, invective, and childish put-downs in service of the conservative movement. During his long reign over the airwaves, Limbaugh has called abortion rights activists "feminazis", told an African-American caller to "take that bone out of your nose,"

Newbie mistake. Sorry for the double postings

I hate it when people trot out their offspring as an accomplishment and evidence of "a life." Any female with a functioning reproductive system can produce a human fetus -- it doesn't take any particular skill. And by all accounts, you can have a child OR a life, but not both. Once you reproduce, your life centers around the child. What did the child eat? What did the child excrete? What dull/disgusting thing did the child do today (speak three words, eat his own vomit, whip it out in public), and how can I most effectively bore/horrify my coworkers with the recounting while they're trying to work? If your version of "a life" is finding some dude dumb enough to knock up a freak who spends her days obsessing over a show SHE DOESN'T EVEN LIKE and launching personal attacks on total strangers for no particular reason on the internets, then thanks but I'll pass. MY non-life of books, friends, social activity, readings, rock shows, gardening, swimming, dancing, writing, and general childless fun sounds much better than your hell of free-floating, pointless rage, "Alison."

Re: KarmaBites. I actually hadn't heard of her before reading this interview, and I wish I hadn't. "We had sex and he was mean" is personal shit and none of my business given Olbermann's position in society. Did he commit a crime? Did he injure someone? Does he hypocritically use his position to spew about sexual morality? No? Then KarmaBites is just celebrismut.

Lemon is an apt moniker for you. You're seething with jealousy of a woman who has a home and a husband and a family and your rage and bitterness is here for all to see. No wonder you like Olbermann so much, you both have sour, rotten dispositions where anyone more successful than you is concerned.

Oh, poor baby Brandon -- are your people being oppressed? I don't know where you found anything resembling jealousy in my post, but then again you've spent the past THREE DAYS whining about the fact that people like a show you don't, so clearly you're responding only to the voices in your head.

No wonder you don't have a man in your life Lemon. You obviously hate men. All except your imaginary boyfriend Olbermann. But in case you haven't heard, he's shacked up with a 21-year old girl so I don't think he'll be knocking on your door anytime soon. And you'd scare him if he did. But again, for the record? Olbermann has a history of insulting his coworkers and for being difficult. Acknowledge it, embrace it as well as admitting he's a liberal and I'll go away. And you might want to get some help with your anger issues. You seem very bitter and filled with rage and issues towards men in general and any woman who has a life you secretly want for your own. Not to mention blind and utterly ignorant to what Olbermann is really like. Sad really.

I never even mentioned Olbermann in my posts -- you're the one with the alarming man-on-man fixation. And here's a tip for insulting women -- calling us manless hasn't upset us for a couple decades now, and over 40 is (A.) not considered old any more, and (B.) also not upsetting as most women hope to live to and well past 40, as the only alternative is death. If you want to upset a girl, call her fat. It's really the only way. It's not as effective on the internet, admittedly, but it's still going to work better than what you've tried so far. Good luck, Fatty McTinypenis.

Oh, or accuse us of having a baggy vagina. Nobody wants a big, stretchy beav.

You know, you're right about that "Lemon". It's why Olbermann likes 20-year olds.

You know, you're right about that "Lemon". It's why Olbermann likes 20-year olds.

Hey, who doesn't?

Look this has been fun, but I have a date and I have to leave now or I'll be unfashionably late. Here's a parting gift:

Oh Lemon, you are just bitter because you are too fat to find a man with a large penis. When you sleep with a guy he feels like he's dipping a cocktail weenie into a swimming pool full of lukewarm mayo after climbing to the perilous summit of a mountain of jello.

That's how it's done.

Lemon, for your sake, I hope your hot date is with a psychiatrist. Your posts here reveal someone desperately in need of some real psychological help.

If Lemon were one of my kids, I'd spank them and send them to their room. For life. And I'd like to note that since the KO-fanatics couldn't attack the facts of my posts they decided to attack me instead. I really feel sorry for you people, if this idiot is your hero, no wonder you're such bitterly unhappy individuals.

I love to see Olberlovers in action--how they hate. And hate and hate and hate. Then accuse others of hating. I'm glad I'm no longer associated with that crowd. I'd rather have a happy life.

Perhaps the Olbyloons would have a happier life if they ordered this: http://www.comeasyouare.com/index.cfm?fa=catalog.Product&ProductId=2188. Lemon doesn't sound like she's ever had one in her life so this might be the ideal Christmas gift for her and her fellow Olbyloons. And hey, maybe even for Olby to give to the women in his life. We hear he doesn't exactly deliver the goods in that department.

Alison sounds just like a typical conservative -- she's perfectly comfortable attacking everyone else, but the second she feels like someone she's being insulted, she cries like a baby that she's being unfairly oppressed.

Brandon, I hope your weekend date was with your hand, because you're obviously not getting any other action and I'd hate to think you're this wound up all the time. You remind me of those impotent little toy dogs girls have taken to carrying in lieu of clutch purses in the past year or so -- obnoxious, incontinent, and ultimately inconsequential. Repeat after me, Brandon: "It's just a show, and I don't have to watch it. Other people like things I don't, and it's not a big deal."