On January 22nd (Keith Olbermann Leaving MSNBC: A Silver Lining?), I wrote some speculations on how Keith Olbermann would return to TV, These two showed some prescience:
· Keith becomes the core of a new Liberal news and opinion network (broadcast or cable, TV or radio), possibly with the backing of a George Soros or similar supporter, bringing his guaranteed uber-loyal audience;
· Not-so-crazy (and actually my favorite): Adrift UPN, want a built-in audience? Remake yourself with Keith as a core program. UPN has been a 5th-wheel network since the merger with The WB. Hiring Keith did kinda work for MSNBC. Could lightning strike twice in the same place? This could be your niche, UPN, and your chance (“MyKeithTV”?);
It sort of ended up being a combination: A Liberal TV network started by Al Gore instead of George Soros, and Current TV instead of UPN, but the logic held.
AirAmerica Radio was a valiant, but ultimately failed, effort at creating a liberal counterweight to Fox. If there was a single problem with the effort, it’s that there was no grand national personality to generate PR and pull in listeners. It also confronted a reality that most of the radio show syndicators are conservative-leaning corporations, and simply didn’t broadcast it. Not that their own conservative bias would prevent most of these media companies from earning a buck, but all things being equal…
Keith has been hired by a (relatively) new liberal TV network (Current TV), and he will be the core of a new, growing, strong news and commentary line-up. If things go as they did at MSNBC, they should have an impressive prime-time news/commentary line-up within a year.
I predict that Keith’s hiring will presage these outcomes:
· As I did when I first learned of it, “Fans of Keith” (FOKs) will immediately find Current TV’s channel on their cable system. (FYI, you can find Current TV on your cable/satellite system by going here.) For most (as for me), it will be the first time they’ve even noticed the channel, let alone watched it.
· These same folks, now that they’ve found Current TV, will sample some of their other programs. (“Bar Karma” actually sounds interesting, once you get past the odd title. I’ll probably check it out.)
· On AT&T U-Verse (and networks with similar options), a movement will begin to list Current TV as a news channel on U-Verse’s “News Multiview”, generating even more samplers of the network.
· Within 1-2 years, Current TV will become a much-viewed and essential part of the political conversation from a liberal perspective.
MSNBC is essentially “The Network that Olbermann Built”. I ended my previous article with the comment, “Keith, go forth and multiply…”
So far, so good.
