Current TV fires Keith Olbermann, and Keith Olbermann says he'll sue
Bringing to a close weeks of tense standoffs and snide remarks, Current TV has ended its relationship with Keith Olbermann, whose Countdown has served for the past year as the plucky cable channel’s most heavily rotated series, while his knowing smirk has served as its public face. Olbermann and Current had been on the outs since at least December, when Olbermann refused to take part in the network’s coverage of the Republican primaries, setting off a prolonged public airing of grievances that eventually culminated in today's parting of ways.
That back-and-forth included this Newsweek article in which Rebecca Dana claimed Olbermann had spent his freshman year complaining about his show’s cheap sets, his car service, and his lack of influence over hiring decisions, despite ostensibly being the network’s “Chief News Officer.” This was answered by various statements and emails fired off by Olbermann to outlets like The Hollywood Reporter, in which he claimed he was not being given "acceptable conditions" under which to host, making acerbic reference to the many technical glitches that had become as much a part of his show as his (recently suspended) “Worst Persons In The World” segment.
Then, things got kind of ugly: Soon enough, anonymous former MSNBC staffers were coming forward to elucidate what Current TV probably had to deal with by detailing all the crappy things he supposedly did during his era there, with Olbermann immediately turning his ever-bristling rage on the outlets that published them. And of course, all the while, Olbermann continued to burnish his public image by firing insults back at the people who talk shit about him on Twitter, every single day. Evidently, Current finally had enough of the noise, issuing this "open letter to the viewers" from co-founders Al Gore and Joel Hyatt:
We created Current to give voice to those Americans who refuse to rely on corporate-controlled media and are seeking an authentic progressive outlet. We are more committed to those goals today than ever before. Current was also founded on the values of respect, openness, collegiality, and loyalty to our viewers. Unfortunately these values are no longer reflected in our relationship with Keith Olbermann and we have ended it.