Fisticuffs on MSNBC

The talent doing MSNBC's marathon heavy lifting at the DNC is roiling with sniping and bad blood coming out in actual on-air scuffles.

An MSNBC source says "It's a pressure-cooker around here, and it seems like all the old grudges are coming up and professional backstabbing. Something is going to blow before this is over." 

She echoed what a "high-ranking MSNBC journalist" who told Politico Wednesday: "The situation at our channel is about to blow up,"
 

(Our source is NOT Rachel Maddow who is understandably not answering queries about this. Our person is someone off-air who describes her job thi s week as "keeping her head low and her mouth shut.") As Olbermann's protege, there is reportedly ill-will for Rachel from staffers, since she prefers to stay out of the rumbles).

Keith Olbermann has helped bring the ratings the formerly near-do-well cable channel enjoys and that clout and his ambitions are at the forefront of the conflicts. We're told that nobody can believe how much he's getting away with with the on-air remarks.

Chris Matthews, Joe Scarborough and David Shuster also take part in these pissing matches.

On Monday evening, Olbermann interrupted Scarborough while he was talking about McCain being competitive in the polls. “Jesus, Joe, why don’t you get a shovel?” Olbermann remarked.

On “Morning Joe” the following day, a clearly agitated Scarborough went off on Shuster during a discussion of Iraq, which quickly devolved over several cringe-worthy minutes into personal attacks, such as Scarborough telling the world how his colleague missed the show three times by oversleeping. "Are you Rip Van Shuster?” Scarborough asked. “Have you been sleeping for the past couple of months?”

But Scarborough, a former Republican congressman from Florida, became enraged when Shuster made a reference to “your party.” Asked by Scarborough what his party was, Shuster said he was an “independent.”

Olbermann is said to have helped get rid of Dan Abrams to get Rachel her upcoming show; and is reportedly unapologetic about working to boot Chris Matthews. (These would be good things he's doing, but the process does not make him beloved, or help the network's coverage).

This scuffle for dominance on the up and coming cable don't make for the most comfortable of moments in the long hours Keith and Matthews sit side by side anchoring the convention coverage.

NBC suits are laughing this off, but most believe that it's in part accounting for the cable poor convention  performance.

"This can't continue," says our source." It's affecting everybody." She says she can't imagine these conditions at the Republican convention next week. "Something's got to happen."

Comments

[Duffman]

My guess? It's all designed and calculated for ratings. Move along...nothing to see here just attempt at manipulative ratings-generation. Who really gives a s*** about ANYthing on MSNBC any way.

[chuck]

Actually Duffy, there has been some pretty serious crud going on at MSNBC. It does not at all sound contrived.
Most of it does seem to be Olbermann instigated though. It will get down to either Scarborough and Chris Matthews or Phil Griffin or Kieth Olbermann getting the boot. People who work there at all levels are ducking and complaining. The work invironment sucks. I could be wrong (for the first time?), but I can not see these folks being allowed to continually trash the NBC brand name beyound what having Olbermann on air in the first place does to the brand.

[sparky]

Joe "There's a Dead Intern in My Office So I'm Quitting"" Scarborough is highly pissed at how much time the network spends on promoting Keith and Rachel. He is especially pissed that Rachel, a newcomer, gets the spot between broadcasts of Countdown.
Therefore, Keith is being targeted by those who feel passed over..the rumor this morning was that he wants Tom Brokaw gone...its laughable, but I hope they fix this pretty soon.

As Duffman says " Jealousy..."

[KS]

An orchestrated pissing match - all for ratings. MSLSD needs all the help they can get. If Obama loses, Olby will be outtathere....WHO-HO !

[Burf]

If it's all for ratings, why do you all say you couldn't care less about this stuff? If that's true, it seems like a stupid way to get ratings.

[nevets]

The Messiah speaks and throws more under the bus.

[nevets]

lets see if MSNBC will fight about this tomorrow.

From Husseins speech;

"Because next week, in Minnesota, the same party that brought you two terms of George Bush and Dick Cheney will ask this country for a third."

Was that what he meant by this;

"And that's to be expected. Because if you don't have any fresh ideas, then you use stale tactics to scare the voters."

[KS]

Sounds like hypocrisy, Steven - he did the same thing he accused the Republicans of doing - the politics of fear and smear. That old canard of McCain being the third term of Bush is old and worn out demagoguery. If they want to link McCain to something less than desirable, try something new - Obama and Biden and try making it defensible.

[Coiler for bridge safety]

Let's hope McSame picks the failing bridge governor.

[AuthenticAndrew]

Obviously it's all Olbermann's fault, but I blame the management for not managing properly. It sounds like a free for all.

[nevets]

Yesterday, Senator Biden said

"And in the Senate, John (McCain) sided with President Bush 95 percent of the time."

Today, Hussein comes out and contradicts Biden by saying

"But the record's clear: John McCain has voted with George Bush ninety percent of the time."

Can they ever get thier story straight.

Oh, how many years has Senator Kennedy, Senator Kerry, and Senator Biden been in the Senate?

Hussein in his speech tonight;

"You see, we Democrats have a very different measure of what constitutes progress in this country."

"We measure progress by how many people can find a job that pays the mortgage; whether you can put a little extra money away at the end of each month so you can someday watch your child receive her college diploma."

Not much progress going on with them three in the Senate for the past three decades is there.

[Puget Sound]

Olberman pulled the same stuff at ESPN, MSNBC the first time he had a show, Fox News. and now back at MSNBC.
He's a nutter who is fun to watch. You just never know when he'll explode. Ironically, there are those that actually take Keith seriously.
So what happened to Dan 'beat the press' Abrahms?

[stevemc]

Uh, Scarborough? He should feel lucky anyone's even noticing it. Scarborough's FoxLite (tm) concept is a failed fossil.

The tension between Olbermann and Matthews is good -- not in the least because each of them could USE someone calling BS on them.

Maddow is the rational, hopeful future of MSNBC.

For my money, the most entertaining aspect of the MSNBC coverage have been the panels with Maddow sitting next to Pat Buchanan. Pat is so erratic these days, he's the iPod of right wing nuttiness on Shuffle, pitching softballs over the plate for Rachel's repartee.

[Puget Sound]

Here is scarborough taking apart shuster.

shuster ripped

Matthews snaps back at Olberman

And of course, the History Channel special on Keith Olberman. A favorite.

confusing loudness with truth

[joanie]

And all you've got is a difference of 5% in one line of each of their speeches? That's like admitting we've won, Steven. Thanks.

I liked Dan Abrams. I don't think Olbermann can carry this off. He's good but I can see limitations. He gets a little pedantic and long-winded. We'll see. I thought Abrams was just about right.

Brokaw? He belongs in the media history books along with Kronkite and that's the way it is.

[Puget Sound]

With Russert's passing, Olberman has really taken ahold of MSNBC. If you read the History of ESPN the comments and stories are not very flattering towards Olberman.
He seems to be extremely well fed nowadays.

[sparky]

stevemc did you see the YOUTUBE video of Pat Buchanan's effusive and glowing compliments about Obama's speech tonight... The best part was the look of stunned shock on Rachel's face.

[nevets]

You haven't been listening Joanie. You have been smitten.

Did you see Kathleen Kennedy say that JFK and Hussein have comparable experience. When Greta asked her to be more specific, she got all flusstered and backtracked to the "we need new moral leadership" line. I am glad Greta didn't press to much, it would have been uglier and sadder than Teds speech the other day. How can the Husseins send Teddy, who grew up calling his brother "Jack" be sent to the podium and call his brother John Kennedy.

This is Husseins way of saying the old guard is just that, old, and a new guard has arrived. I am starting to believe that the Husseins have something over both the Kennedys and Clintons head to get them to fall in line.

[nevets]

Hussein attacks McCain but in doing so attacks his own VP.

"Washington's been talking about our oil addiction for the last thirty years, and John McCain has been there for twenty-six of them."

And Biden has been there for all thirty years. Another slap in the face to Biden.

[nevets]

And thats not going to be an "army of teachers" Hussein hires if elected. It will be an "army of thugs". And where will he get these thugs from.

"we must provide more ladders to success for young men who fall into lives of crime and despair."

Yes, from the prisons. To roam the streets ensurin;

"but each of us must do our part to make our homes and businesses more efficient."

Hussein is sounding more like a Mullah than a President.

[Vince]

I now watch MSNBC because of Keith Olberman. Keith and Rachel offer an unapologetic liberal perspective for those who won't watch the conservative Fox news. It's brilliant, and if management would let Joe Scarborough (the king of personal attacks) go, and replace him with someone more liberal, it would go towards cementing even more viewers like me on a regular basis. I hope the door hits him hard on the way out.

[orcas]

Why is Olbermann lauded as a ratings grabber? MSNBC ratings are at the bottom and have not moved from the bottom since Olbermann arrived.

[joanie]

Even at the bottom, it's millions and millions...

I'm glad Scarborough is included. The contrast between him and the reasonableness of Maddow and Olbermann is telling. So, let it talk.

I don't watch Olbermann all the way through or all the time. But, I'm not anti Olbermann either. He's been good for the liberals.

Scarborough well represents the peevish conservatives.