MSNBC shifts Matthews, Olbermann

[Deku Trii]

MSNBC said Monday that it will replace the team of Chris Matthews and Keith Olbermann as anchors of its live political coverage for the rest of the presidential campaign season.

David Gregory, NBC News’ chief White House correspondent, will be the primary host of coverage of the presidential and vice presidential debates coming up over the next two months, as well as election night, said Phil Griffin, MSNBC’s president.

The decision was first reported in Monday’s editions of The New York Times and The Washington Post.

Matthews, the host of “Hardball,” and Olbermann, the host of “Countdown,” will remain “front and center” during those events, Griffin said. He said reports by other news organizations had mischaracterized the decision as a demotion of the network’s two highest-rated stars.

“ ‘Hardball’ and ‘Countdown’ are at the center of the growth of MSNBC and the success we’re having,” Griffin said, who called the network’s ratings gains over the past year “a great success story.”

Network denies conservative pressure
MSNBC remains the third-rated cable news network, but in the past year, its rating have risen sharply along with Olbermann’s emergence as a critic of the Bush administration and, more recently, the presidential campaign of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.

Critics, especially Republicans and conservative media commentators, accused the network itself — including NBC News’ anchors and reporters — of tilting left.

(Msnbc.com, a joint venture of NBC News and Microsoft Corp., is the online outlet for MSNBC programming and provided live streaming video of the network’s convention coverage.)

In a statement, Brent Bozell, president of the Media Resource Center, a conservative media watchdog group that has criticized MSNBC for what it calls the network’s bias against Republicans, said: “Arch-liberal MSNBC has finally pulled the plug on the horrendous anchor tandem of Olbermann and Matthews. It’s a good move, but it’s about time.”

Griffin disputed that Matthews and Olbermann were reassigned in response to pressure from Republican operatives or conservative commentators. “They’re wrong,” he said.

Olbermann ‘very uncomfortable’ during GOP convention
Griffin said Matthews and Olbermann agreed with the decision to change their roles, characterizing it as a shift that had been envisioned from the beginning.

“We agreed months ago to re-evaluate after every major event” of the campaign season, Griffin said.

“They couldn’t speak what I like them to do on their shows. They couldn’t speak openly and authentically,” he said. “For the most part, it worked, but I think ... Keith felt very uncomfortable after the 9/11 tribute.”

During the Republican National Convention last week, Olbermann, in his role as news anchor, criticized the Republican Party for airing a video tribute to the victims of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

“We would be rightly eviscerated at all quarters, perhaps by the Republican Party itself, for exploiting the memories of the dead and, perhaps, even for trying to evoke that pain again,” Olbermann said.

Matthews also has come in for criticism for his enthusiasm for McCain’s Democratic opponent, Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, and for comments that supporters of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., said were biased against women.

After Obama’s acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention two weeks ago, Matthews, serving as a news anchor, noted that his critics had accused him of openly supporting Obama and said, “To hell with my critics.”

Griffin said that rather than pull his stars back, he wanted to lift the “restraint” imposed by their roles as straight news anchors. “I want them to be totally comfortable,” he said.

Adding Gregory to the mix as “the man in the middle” will allow the network to “take the best of MSNBC and NBC News,” he said. “MSNBC and NBC News have a great success story.”

MSNBC shifts Matthews, Olbermann - Television - MSNBC.com

[I am nobody]

Critics, especially Republicans and conservative media commentators, accused the network itself — including NBC News’ anchors and reporters — of tilting left.

Have they ever turned on Fox?

[Crazyswordsman]

Proof that MSNBC itself isn't liberal. Fox, meanwhile, puts Sean Hannity, Brit Hume, and Bill O'Reilly, who censor liberals they talk to (unlike Chris Matthews), front and center. -CSM

[Perrin Aybara]

I like Matthews, but Olbermann has gotten painfully annoying over the last few years. He's almost unwatchable now.

I'm glad that they gave Rachael Maddow her own show. She's hot.-jay

[Speed]

I like Olbermann AND Matthews.

I also like anything on CNN.

[Perrin Aybara]

I have a hard time watching Olbermann now since it's too annoying to watch someone bash Bush, McCain, and any conservative relentlessly and often without merit for a whole hour.

Yeah, I know, Bush sucks. But for crap sake, talk about something else for once.

-jay

[Lurch1982]

Old news.

Olbermann shouldn't have been in an anchor role. Matthews should.

[Speed]

Originally Posted by Perrin Aybara

I have a hard time watching Olbermann now since it's too annoying to watch someone bash Bush, McCain, and any conservative relentlessly and often without merit for a whole hour.

Yeah, I know, Bush sucks. But for crap sake, talk about something else for once.

-jay

There is atleast reason for the Bush stuff.

But true, he needs find something else to talk about.

EDIT: I only need 20 Minutes for Conservative bashing.

[Mario271]

CNN = amazing. I think they have the least bias out of all of them. I cannot stand Fox News...Sean Hannity and Billo annoy the crap out of me.

I do like Olbermann, but I do think he takes some of his criticism a bit too far. The recent 9/11 "special comment" on Countdown was a bit too much.

[Crazyswordsman]

Olbermann and Matthews admittedly have no right being anchors (as much as I love Matthews), just as Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity don't. All four of them host opinion shows. -CSM

[Speed]

Originally Posted by Crazyswordsman

Olbermann and Matthews admittedly have no right being anchors (as much as I love Matthews), just as Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity don't. All four of them host opinion shows. -CSM

That's true.

There to completely diffrent things.

[Lurch1982]

Originally Posted by Crazyswordsman

Olbermann and Matthews admittedly have no right being anchors (as much as I love Matthews), just as Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity don't. All four of them host opinion shows. -CSM

Matthews carried the network for like a decade. Its a sign of disrespect, similar to Rather getting ****canned out of CBS.

Also, considering MSNBC really doesn't have a straight news show because they focus on opinion/analysis (which is why they're insanely more watchable than CNN, which is watered down drivel and outside of Olbermann's show they're more balanced than Fox), I don't see why they're pulling the "objective" reporting card here because they've shifted all of their focus shows to "politics," not news. Plus, Gregory is just awful and his show manages to make politically interesting topics bland and boring.