Lean Backward

Keith Olbermann unexpectedly ended his association with MSNBC last night, ending his commentary show "Countdown" after a run of nearly eight years. No one, least of all Olbermann himself, is saying why his contract with MSNBC was terminated, and Comcast, which just acquired NBC/Universal and its cable networks, is denying its takeover had anything to do with it.

"Countdown" was MSNBC's most popular evening show, and cancelling it makes about as much sense as Volkswagen discontinuing the Jetta in the United States to improve U.S. sales. But then, maybe Olbermann, who had crossed the fine line between impudence and insubordination repeatedly in the past, decided he had to finish the show before it finished him. Not only does it leave his Fox News arch-nemesis Billo the Clown (also known as Bill O'Reilly) still standing despite Olbermann's jabs at him (they were on opposite each other), but it denies MSNBC a clown of its own. Olbermann was the only deliberately hilarious pundit MSNBC had. Rachel Maddow goes more for wit than for outright hilarity, and Chris Matthews is only unintentionally funny. (Hah!) And I don't expect O'Reilly will be losing sleep over the fact that his fellow Irishman Lawrence O'Donnell, whose journalistic style is more suitable for an article in The New Republic than for cable television, will be taking over the 8 PM Eastern Time slot with "The Last Word."

Seems we forced MSNBC to put him back on the air during his last suspension for nothing, eh?

Olbermann's departure shows just how difficult it is to get a consistent progressive voice on American broadcasting in an age when commercial television and radio is under the ownership of non-progressive business conglomerates and public television and radio is "made possible by" the same. Rush Limbaugh debuted on nationally syndicated radio in 1988; the liberal network Air America has come and gone in that time. Limbaugh's only been joined by Hannity, Beck, and other successful reactionary talk radio hosts since he went national (and the nation went gaga). Billo the Clown will likely remain on Fox - with a growing audience - long after a new show to replace Olbermann's (if such a show is ever created) is itself canceled.

Liberal media activist groups advocate working for media reform. I advocate getting a life. Because if you work for media reform, you're as likely to enjoy success against the right as Lawrence O'Donnell is against Bill O'Reilly.

MSNBC, which only recently appeared to achieve some sense of stability and consistency, is in free fall once again. No wonder that cable news channel mostly shows sensationalist documentaries on the weekends. At least we can count on them being there.