"I'm gonna get as much media down here as I can so everyone will know what's going on." Michael Moore was trying to make his way through the scrum in Zuccotti Park after a fifteen minute appearance on MSNBC. Moore professed that he'd do everything he could amid shouts of "Move to Cuba!" and "We love you Michael!" before speeding away in his waiting SUV. Meanwhile, the majority of the several hundred protestors stationed in the park met in a General Assembly, and continued the slow work of hashing out finite goals for the ongoing occupation of Wall Street. more ›

As was expected, the Reverend Al Sharpton confirmed that he will join MSNBC starting in less than a week. Sharpton will be hosting "PoliticsNation," which airs weeknights at 6 p.m.; he will be replacing Cenk Uygur, who left the network in July. And Sharpton is already spouting team-speak about the show: "I am very happy and honored to join the MSNBC team as we collectively try to get America to 'Lean Forward." more ›

Editor-at-large of DIY indie zine Time Magazine Mark Halperin was back in his role as a MSNBC political analyst today on Morning Joe. It was the first time in a month that Halperin was on since his indefinite suspension for calling President Obama a "dick." The Daily News reports that the cast made no mention of Halperin's slip up, and that he was "subdued." But more interestingly, Pat Buchanan apologized for referring to President Obama as Al Sharpton's "boy" on Sharpton's program last night. "Some folks took what I said as some kind of slur. None was meant, none was intend, none was delivered," Buchanan said. How DARE anyone accuse a former Nixon staffer of racism. more ›

Rachel Maddow will remain on MSNBC for years to come. more ›

While nothing has been officially announced, conventional wisdom—or at least media gossip—says that the Rev. Al Sharpton will be hosting the 6 p.m. hour of MSNBC. Which now means donations that Comcast (which owns NBC, MSNBC) made to Sharpton's organization, National Action Network, and his lobbying on behalf of the cable provider look at least a little interesting. more ›

No stranger to controversy, the Reverend Al Sharpton looks he'll be like the newest member of MSNBC's left-leaning talk show crew. Last week, TV Newser reported that Sharpton, filling in for usual 6 p.m. host Cenk Uygur, had higher ratings in a key demographic and now the NY Times says, "Mr. Sharpton’s imminent hiring, which was acknowledged by three people at the channel on condition of anonymity because the contract had not been signed, is significant in part because MSNBC and other news channels have been criticized for a paucity of minority hosts in prominent time slots." more ›

After Time editor-at-large and MSNBC talking head Mark Halperin called President Obama a "dick" during Morning Joe, the veteran newsman apologized via Twitter, statement and on MSNBC. Jon Stewart looked at Halperin's apology and wondered why MSNBC couldn't just focus in on Halperin, instead making it seem like Halperin's apology was chaperoned by Willie Geist: more ›

Time magazine's editor-at-large and political analyst Mark Halperin appeared on MSNBC's Morning Joe, where he called President Obama a "dick." And now he feels bad! Halperin Tweeted, "I want to offer a heartfelt and profound apology to the President and the viewers of Morning Joe.My remark was not funny.I deeply regret it." Ahh, the lamestream media. more ›

Keith Olbermann returned to cable television last night with his Current TV version of Countdown with Keith Olbermann. The former ESPN anchor-turned-vocal libtard left MSNBC in January and announced his move to Al Gore's network in April. His show is pretty much the same as before, if only on a different channel, and he's still "madder than hell." His first "Worst Persons In The World" segment featured everyone's favorite "very well-educated" Metro-North rider, Hermon Raju (see video below), but to some MSNBC viewers, Olbermann is a Worst Person for running four minutes in the 9 p.m. Rachel Maddow hour! more ›

Yesterday, MSNBC host Ed Schultz issued a public apology to talk-show host Laura Ingraham after he called her a "right-wing slut" and "talk slut" on his syndicated radio program earlier this week. "I used vile and inappropriate language...It was wrong, uncalled for, and I recognize the severity of what I said,” he said at the start of “The Ed Show" on MSNBC last night. Schultz has been suspended without pay for at least a week for the incident. Watch his apology below: more ›

After his Hangover II co-star Ed Helms hosted Satuday Night Live over the weekend, Zach Galifianakis grabbed comedians Nick Kroll and Al Madrigal and infiltrated the MSNBC studios, as anchor Veronica De La Cruz delivered the news on the air at 1:30 a.m. You can see the trio in the video below, and also in the MSNBC screenshot above (Cruz seemed cool with it, later taking a photo with them). And Kroll says, "this is now on my reel." more ›

Three months after leaving MSNBC, number one libtard Keith Olbermann has announced his return to airwaves today in a video at his website, FOKNewsChannel, FOK being "Friends of Keith." The new show, Countdown with Keith Olbermann (hmm, that's familiar), will start on June 20 on the small cable network Current TV. He explained, "I wanted to go somewhere where i could expand upon and enlarge upon the work I'd already done...a place where journalistic integrity and analytical honesty would never be compromised by corporate synergy... I found that place at Current TV... where they gave me a title, an equity stake, and a PONY." more ›

[UPDATE BELOW] Former MSNBC news host Keith Olbermann will announce his next move in just a few minutes. (There's a countdown clock here for all you Olberfanns.) But Media Decoder already knows the gist of what he's going to say: Olbermann is going to have a show on Current TV, the editorially progressive network founded by former Vice President Al Gore in 2005. Compared to 85 million MSNBC viewers, Current, um, currently has about 60 million, and unlike MSNBC, it doesn't come with basic cable. So if a liberal bloviates in the forest and only treehuggers are there to hear him, does really he make a sound? more ›

Keith Olbermann, the now-former MSNBC talk show host, has admired Next Media Animation's CGI reenactments as such moments as "Tiger Woods' car accident," but now NMA has given him his own video, which feature the Special Commenter with a golden parachute, being pushed by a NBC employee, replacing Parker/Spitzer on CNN and mopping up after Glenn Beck. more ›

Last night, Keith Olbermann surprised viewers by saying it was his last broadcast of his MSNBC talk show, Countdown With Keith Olbermann, saying he was “told that this is the last edition of your show." While MSNBC sources say the decision was mutual, the talk show host's and cable network's relationship apparently took a toll after Olbermann's political donations during the midterms—exposed by Politico—turned into a suspension for the 51-year-old, who then complained about it when he returned on air. According to The Daily Beast's Howard Kurtz, NBC and MSNBC executives "began to talk [after the suspension] about how the channel was now on solid enough footing to survive without him." more ›

It was Bowling for Columbine revisited on The Rachel Maddow Show last night. Maddow has been covering the increased debate on gun control in the wake of the Tuscon massacre, and her guest was activist filmmaker Michael Moore, who asked the same difficult question that perplexed him in his smash hit 2002 documentary (which won an Academy Award): Why are Americans so trigger happy? The interview began with that stunning segment from Moore's film wherein K-Mart reps meet with two Columbine High massacre victims, whose presence persuades the company to stop selling handgun ammunition. more ›

Call it the Olbermann Effect: After revealing that Keith Olbermann had donated to political campaigns (against NBC News policy), leading to his brief suspension from MSNBC, Politico has once again found out about the undisclosed political donations of another MSNBC personality. This time, it's former Republican Congressman Joe Scarborough. Politico reports, "MSNBC said Friday that it is suspending 'Morning Joe' co-host Joe Scarborough for two days after he acknowledged giving eight previously unknown $500 contributions to friends and family members running for state and local offices during his tenure at the network, a violation of parent NBC’s ban on political contributions by employees without specific permission from the network president." So, is the show going to be called "Morning Mika" for those two days? more ›

So much for that unpaid suspension: The Daily Beast reports that feisty MSNBC host Keith Olbermann was actually paid for the days he was suspended, after not following NBC News policy regarding political contributions (employees are supposed to tell their supervisors; Olbermann claims he had no idea). The article adds that Olbermann is, shockingly enough, a diva—"his staff leave[s] notes outside his door rather than speaking to him"—but Gawker suggests that MSNBC is also a diva and both parties "need to get over themselves." more ›

After his two-day unpaid suspension for making political donations without alerting his superiors, Keith Olbermann was back on MSNBC hosting Countdown. It was, as ever, a Keith-fest. He seemed awed (or smug) about the reaction, saying, "You know, when there is a petition supporting and it winds up being signed by 300,000 people, you get 21,000 Tweets in a 72 hour period, and you are invited to be on television because you aren't on television because they want you on 'Good Morning, America,' and 'Larry King' and 'Letterman' and you break records on the Huffington Post and you're on the front page of the New York Times without being dead or in jail or Charlie Sheen or something. For me, it was a surprise. All I can say is I'm stunned and greatful and it still feels like a universal hug." more ›

MSNBC host Keith Olbermann will be back at his Countdown anchor desk tonight, after being suspended without pay for making political donations without notifying his higher-ups, but he wanted to clear everything up before then. Last night, he released a statement thanking his viewers for their "extraordinary and ground-rattling support" and complained that while he made a mistake (and had no clue about NBC's "inconsistently applied" policy about news employees and political donations), he was "suspended without a hearing, and learned of that suspension through the media." more ›

After being suspended without pay last week—for failing to inform management about his political donations—Keith Olbermann will be back hosting his MSNBC show on Tuesday night. MSNBC president Phil Griffin said, "After several days of deliberation and discussion, I have determined that suspending Keith through and including Monday night's program is an appropriate punishment for his violation of our policy. We look forward to having him back on the air Tuesday night." more ›

Yesterday, MSNBC suspended Countdown host Keith Olbermann without pay after Politico reported that he made donations to three Democratic candidates during this midterm election cycle. Rachel Maddow took up the topic during her MSNBC program, explaining, "The reason that resulted in Keith’s suspension is that, here at MSNBC, there is an explicit employee rule against hosts making contributions like that. You can do it if you ask in advance and management tells you ‘O.K.’ That’s what I understand what happened with our morning show host’s political donations in 2006 under previous management. But if you do not ask in advance, you are bound by the rule." And then she tore into Fox News: more ›

This morning, Politico revealed that MSNBC star Keith Olbermann made campaign contributions to three Democratic candidates...and now the cable network has suspended him without pay. (NBC has a strict policy about that.) Olbermann confirmed the donations, adding, “I did not privately or publicly encourage anyone else to donate to these campaigns, nor to any others in this election or any previous ones, nor have I previously donated to any political campaign at any level." This comes on the heels of (Olbermann's criticism) of News Corp. donations to Republican causes, but as Democratic consultant Hank Sheinkopf told WNYC's Azi Paybarah, "Who did people think [Olbermann] was going to give money to....the tea party?" more ›

This morning Rep. Anthony Weiner met former New York Lieutenant Governor (and current insane person) Betsy McCaughey on MSNBC's Morning Meeting to debate yell about health care. Though Weiner and McCuaghey had their moments, most of the horn-locking happened between her and host Dylan Ratigan, who would not stop demanding she answer his question: How do you get insurance companies to compete instead of monopolizing markets with antitrust exemptions. Or, as Ratigan puts it, how do we "put an end to corporate communism?" Skip ahead to the four minute mark, when the fireworks get started. more ›

Earlier this year we chatted with Rachel Maddow (MSNBC host, swine flu survivor and cocktail aficionado) about many things, including the search for the perfect pre-prohibition Scotch drink. At the time, she told us, "Scotch is used in very few cocktails, but when it is used, it can be very effective. So I'm very interested in trying to figure out what's beyond the Blood and Sand in terms of Scotch in cocktails." more ›

The Observer considers the future of NBC reporter David Gregory, since "lame-duck presidents create lame-duck White House correspondents." more ›

Yet another example of foot-in-mouth syndrome due to the hours of punditry on TV, followed by an apology and suspension! Yesterday, while referring to Chelsea Clinton's campaigning on behalf of her mother, MSNBC correspondent David Shuster commented, "Doesn't it seem as if Chelsea is sort of being pimped out in some weird sort of way?" Yes, he totally said that. Or, as the Washington Post's Howard Kurtz writes, "Using a prostitution metaphor for the daughter of a presidential candidate is a surefire way for a journalist to get into trouble." more ›

No More Bolaris in the Forecast You won’t be seeing John Bolaris anymore on WCBS. He was last seen this past weekend and his bio has been taken down from the CBS 2 website. He will be starting at Fox owned WTXF in Philadelphia next month. We should mention that before the Long Island native was basically run out of town on a rail down there after predicting a blizzard that never happened, although he... more ›