The Real Winner? Keith Olbermann's Ego!

Oh this is too funny. The publicity for Keith Olbermann's Ego keeps rolling along. Today it's from Huffington Post and this little item which proclaims that Keith Olbermann is playing his viewers for fools. Hey little writer man that no one has ever (or will ever) hear anything from: who are they going to believe? Me or you? Look at all those comments. And the winner is? ME! Listen to this overwrought prose:

Much of the blogospheric discussion has centered around Olbermann's response to the furor, post-NYT article, which has been ridiculous and implausible. But it's also worth spending a little time thinking about Olbermann's initial response -- to the order from on high. As I see it, at that moment in time, Olbermann had four clear choices:

1. Resign his position in protest.
2. Refuse to go along with the edict, and risk his firing.
3. Publicly disclose what he had been told to do.
4. Lie to his viewers.

What he clearly decided to do was #4.

Yep. #4 It was. Because I mean, come on, let's look at the options here. #1: Resign. They pay The Ego $7.5 Mil a year. That was a non-starter from Day 1. The Ego has two (count 'em: two) Park Avenue Apartments. Then there's Katy. Hell, The Ego needs the $7.5 mil a year just to support her and her little hobbies--you know, getting jobs at The Weather Channel, WNBC, etc. Then of course there is The Ego's baseball collection. Do you have any idea how expensive it can be to buy a 1932 baseball card from some player no one has ever heard of? Okay so #2: Risk firing? Yeah, see The Ego's reasons for #1. #3? Publicly disclose that the Ego loves money more than integrity and journalistic ethics and blah blah blah blah? It doesn't look good for the Ego. So naturally that left once choice and one choice only: lie! And as the Ego has explained: lying is easy once you learn how to fake sincerity.

Take a look at the comments on HuffPost. Those people love the Ego's ass. As they should. If The Ego told them to go jump off the Golden Gate Bridge they'd do it because The Ego told them to. The Ego figured out a long time ago that the best way to develop a rabid (and oh boy do some of them need their shots--I mean a few of them scare me) audience was to wrap myself up in the liberal cause. Thus, anyone criticizing me would be branded a GOP operative. Anyone who dares point out anything bad The Ego says or does would also be branded a GOP operative. In short, it is every Liberal's duty to protect and defend their country Keith Olbermann. And that's the way it should be!

Olbermann's perplexing reaction to the controversy, which has been to blow hot snot all over New York Times reporter Brian Stelter's reporting, while simultaneously "honoring" and praising the accuracy of Salon blogger Glenn Greenwald's response, which was based entirely on Stelter's reporting. One cannot decry one report, one minute, and then "honor" the same conclusions the next. On Monday's broadcast he called Brian Stelter one of history's greatest monsters for a day. But then he declared in a statement that Glenn Greenwald's account, which deviated not one iota from the facts Stelter presented, contained "nothing materially factually inaccurate." This is what is known as "total B.S."

Yes but it's Keith Olbermann's bullshit and let me tell you, if it's one thing that The Ego has learned this week is that people also love Keith Olbermann's bullshit. And nothing anyone ever says or does will matter because Keith Olbermann's Ego is well, Keith Olbermann's Ego. As it should be.

Greenwald just won't give it a rest.

Why does Glenn Greenwald hate Keith Olbermann's Ego? How can he call himself a liberal and attack Keith Olbermann? These are very important questions and I'm glad to see that so many of The Ego's fans have decided to grill Greenwald on these very important issues. He's now done a 2nd update on his tired column from yesterday. And he references an "addendum" that David Sirota did in his blog about moi. Good job driving both of them crazy (keep it up).

Some people seem incapable of understanding the significance here. It's really not complicated. It's a major breach of journalistic freedom -- and a serious and

blah blah blah blah. Yeah uh huh. We got you the first 97 times you said that. They don't care Glenn. It's the Ego they love, no matter what, as it should be of course.

I suppose if one finds the issue of corporate control of journalism to be unimportant, then one will find Olbermann's statements unimportant -- but that's about the only view that could justify that reaction.

That's what you think buddy. These people love, love, love the Ego. And nothing you say or do is going to change that, not even the truth lies you people keep spinning about the ego, nor, hee hee, The Ego's statement admitting that nothing you had written was "factually inaccurate". (Psst: The Ego released that statement just to drive Greenwald into hyper-drive. He knows it, I admitted it, and there's nothing he can do about the nasty comments piling up at Salon. The Ego loves it!).

Nothing is more irrelevant to the discussion than whether one "likes" Keith Olbermann or enjoys watching him on the TV. That would be relevant if the topic were: "Who are your favorite TV stars?" But that's not the topic being discussed here. I suppose one could say (as some are arguing in Comments) that one should refrain from ever covering a story that might reflect poorly on anyone who has the same political views as you do; that's the view that led most Republicans to justify everything George Bush did (he's on our side; why criticize him?). But I hope nobody reading this blog expects that sentiment to prevail here (truth-telling and ethical obligations are only for Fox News and Republicans).

LOL. That's what you think Greenwald. The fans obviously feel much differently about this. And who's most important? That's right: The Ego. Oh and his fans.

David Sirota is feeling the love too. It lead to this little shit fit over at his blog that no one would bother reading if it weren't for Keith Olbermann's Ego.

And so I'll just conclude by saying this: You may like Keith Olbermann (as I do), but if your love of Keith Olbermann makes you refuse to defend/demand respect for independent journalism, then you ought to consider how fucked up your value system really is. Loyalty to an individual over loyalty to principles is the definition of cultism. MSNBC partisans insisting that we should ignore General Electric's manipulation of the news out of deference to Keith Olbermann's supposedly infallible awesomeness are at best being intellectually dishonest, and at worst endorsing in precisely the kind of propagandistic pro-censorship sycophancy that is at the heart of this scandal.

Look David (and Glenn and the rest of you): NO ONE CARES. And the Ego loves that they don't care. The only thing that matters to them is the love they feel for Keith Olbermann. What could be more beautiful? Truth, honesty, integrity, journalistic principles, yada yada yada yada, blah blah blah blah. Who cares? Here's what's really important here: Keith Olbermann's Ego. As it should be.

Why won't people just take what Keith Olbermann says

as the undisputed truth and STOP WRITING THE TRUTH LIES ABOUT HIM??? This crap is getting old fast people. First of all, this guy Greenwald at Salon will not give it up. But The Ego would like to thank his fans for rushing to his defense and defending his honor and insisting that everything that falls from Keith Olbermann's Lips is the Undisputed Truth. Here, let me sample for you:

So. . . the fact that Olbermann attacked O'Reilly is proof that he complied with an order NOT to attack O'Reilly? And the proof that there was a deal comes from an anonymous source used by a lawyer-playing-journaliist who has always lambasted actual journalists for using anonymous sources. Delicious.

This led a very frustrated Greenwald to snap:

Why can't people read? The proof comes from Brian Stelter's four independent sources; my independent source with first-hand knowledge of what happened; the fact that Olbermann stopped talking about O'Reilly exactly when GE executives told him to stop; and the fact that Olbermann said nothing that I wrote was inaccurate. Do you need me to repeat that?

Look Glenn, I hate to break it to you, but the people get The Ego. And they get that whatever The Ego tells them is the truth IS THE TRUTH, no pesky things like facts required. Do you need me to repeat that???? I digress. The comments to what Greenwald wrote amuse the Ego and warm his heart. I'm particularly fond of someone calling themselves "Pragma" who demanded that Greenwald reveal an off-the-record source.

I'm not going to make up my mind one way or the other without better data than some unknown third party's word.

Well done Pragma, well done! This so enraged Greenwald that he had to respond with this:

Given that Keith Olbermann himself just said that nothing I said was inaccurate, what difference does it make how you assess the credibility of the source I have? Olbermann himself is stating explicitly that what I wrote was accurate. What else do you need to know?All the love and affectino that you harbor for Keith Olbermann is never going to make this sentence disappear: "I honor Mr. Greenwald's insight into the coverage of GE/NewsCorp talks, and have found nothing materially factually inaccurate about it." Try closing your eyes and clicking your ruby slippers three times -- it will still be there.

I love it when the Fans needle idiots like Greenwald. Saves me the trouble from having to do it myself. Poor Greenwald. The fans were so great about needling him he finally just posted this diatribe:

Olbermann's statement is what I wanted in order to feel fine about not disclosing that evidence, because it states as clearly as can be -- from the horse's mouth -- that what I wrote was accurate. That people can't see the significance of that means they don't want to (I LOVE KEITH!!!!), and for those people, even releasing the emails would do no good.

Yep, love my fans. They understand that they can't believe their own lying eyes where I'm concerned. They need to believe only that The Ego is a perfect being and that the truth is what the Ego tells them it is. I'll admit it, The Ego began to feel so sorry for poor Greenwald that he did indeed give him a statement. Here's how Greenwald described it:

As for the piece I wrote on Saturday, my basis was, quite obviously, Stelter's NYT article. But my basis for the added facts about the GE/Fox deal which I wrote in yesterday's piece were statements made in not-for-attribution emails from a person who has first-hand knowledge of GE's newsroom edict. Today, after I told Olbermann that his on-air denial last night had made it appear that what I wrote was untrue, when we both knew it was entirely accurate, Olbermann issued the following on-the-record statement to me about this matter (emphasis added):

Look, The Ego had to help the guy out (and get him off my butt)so I threw him a little quote.

I honor Mr. Greenwald's insight into the coverage of GE/NewsCorp talks, and have found nothing materially factually inaccurate about it. Fox and NewsCorp have continued a strategy of threat and blackmail by Rupert Murdoch, Roger Ailes, and Bill O'Reilly since at least 2004. But no matter what might have been reported by others besides Mr. Greenwald, and no matter what might have been thought around this industry, there's no "deal." I would never consent, and, fortunately, MSNBC and NBC News would never ask me to.

That's the Ego's story and The Ego is sticking to it (no matter what the facts say). Don't you love the quote? "Nothing materially inaccurate" about what Greenwald has reported, while still denying it? Yes my friends, it is Egospeak in action. Hee hee. But as Greenwald learned, even when the Ego admits that something was actually factually true (more Egospeak), it still doesn't mean the Fans will believe it. God the Ego loves being The Ego.

Oh and one more thing? Add the previously Keith Olbermann's Ego-friendly FireDogLake to the list of enemies.

Olbermann has now made two contradictory statements about his role in the affair: He confirms what Glenn Greenwald wrote, which is that he stopped covering O'Reilly because he was told to by his bosses at GE He says that his decision to stop covering O'Reilly was purely a response to O'Reilly's role in the Tiller incident, and that any assertion to the contrary is a blackmail attempt by Roger Ailes It is clear that there was a deal between GE and News Corp, because both are confirming it. So Olbermann is, at best, guilty of obfuscation by claiming that he was not "party" to any deal.

Details, details. Once you've learned how to fake sincerity, the rest is a piece of cake.

There will be a cloud over Olbermann's credibility until he clarifies what really happened.

Nope. Looking like Sunny Skies for Olbermann's Ego actually. And looking at the comments at that little blog it seems that the rain is falling on FireDogLake, not Keith Olbermann's Ego. The fans get that they only have to believe the ego, not their own lying eyes. And that's exactly how The Ego likes loves it.

Uh oh. Someone doesn't get it.

Namely this guy.

On his show last night, Keith Olbermann essentially issued a non-denial denial about the GE-MSNBC-Fox story, saying that he himself was "party to no deal" -- exactly what he said in the original New York Times article......in Olbermann's non-denial denial last night, he didn't refute the quotes from General Electric management, he didn't refute that MSNBC execs told its producers that they "wanted the channel's other programs [to] restrain from criticizing Fox directly," and he didn't refute this report from TV Newser saying that the parent companies for Fox and MSNBC have been in negotiations for months.

Okay Ego fans, you know what to do: that's right, get busy in the comments section and rip this guy a new one.

And there's obviously something in the water over there at Huffington Post (that's right, they too are no longer a reliable judge of Keith Olbermann's work).

KO and BO are two similar cats in many respects. These monumentally insecure men detest each other to the extent that they care not that it affects the quality of their shows or contributes to the uneasiness of their audience. These are two guys from not-so-serious pasts who now want very much to be respected and considered as media vanguards, two societal forces that can control destiny and history with their words alone.....Olbermann, the snarky Eddie Haskell who thinks he's smarter and pithier than everybody and anybody in the room, especially his Fox counterpart, the oafish Ted Baxter. Both of these guys have Goliath complexes: large men who are braggadocius and to be respected. KO trying to rid himself of the image of an erstwhile sports guy and BO, the journalist manqué, trying to rid himself of KO. .....BO versus KO will forever be remembered as one of televisions greatest hate affairs.

Again, all lies. Except the part where this guy slams Bill O'Reilly. That part is all true.

And please ignore New York magazine as well.

(Olbermann's comments are)...based on the presumption that even though the half of Brian Stelter's story about him was false, the half about Fox News was true, which is awfully convenient for Olbermann.

See? They don't get the greatness that is Keith Olbermann's Ego. If I say what they say about The Ego is a lie, it's a lie. And if The Ego says it's all true about O'Reilly it's all true about O'Reilly, and no questions or snarking allowed otherwise. (What? So they wrote a semi-decent article kinda praising The Ego once. They've turned on The Ego now. They must be immediately blacklisted).

And media critics and journalism professors? What do they know?

(Olbermann's commentary).... is intellectually dishonest, as it implies that Stelter deliberately did not use Olbermann's quote because it didn't fit with what he wanted to write. In fact, Stelter did use it, and he placed it in context. It's very clear from Stelter's story that the deal had been cut by higher-ups, and that Olbermann might or might not go along. Fox News owner Rupert Murdoch came in at number one for trying to muzzle O'Reilly. Hmmm ... doesn't that confirm that Stelter got it right? Glenn Greenwald, who's been blogging away at Salon ever since the Stelter story came out, criticized his ideological soulmate Olbermann last night, writing on Twitter, "Really surprised by the Olbermann denial - there's lots and lots of evidence that the NYT's description about what GE did is 100% accurate." All in all, not a good moment for Olbermann. He may have reclaimed his independence. But he did so at the expense of sliming a journalist who'd broken an important, unflattering story about collusion by media moguls. At the very least, Olbermann ought to award himself the bronze.

The Ego is the best person in the world. How dare this man suggest otherwise?

And speaking of Glenn Greenwald and Salon? Again, ignore them too. He appears to be writing some hard-to-follow gibberish here about how GE is the root of all evil or something.

And finally, add The Nation into the list of people who cannot be trusted when it comes to reporting or commenting on anything Keith Olbermann related. (Yeah, The Ego knows he's been a cover boy for them but now they have betrayed The Ego.)

Since most of these people have "comments" on their page I expect every good Keith Olbermann fan to immediately run to these pages and post diatribes denouncing them as liars immediately. I don't care if you have jobs. What's more important? Your measly, unimportant little job or Keith Olbermann's Ego? That's right people: it's all about me.

**On Edit****
When The Ego said "finally" he meant "Finally" dammit. Sigh. Okay, add Cityfile to the Enemies List (see sidebar for the complete list--for now). Okay so Cityfile has a history of not liking The Ego so naturally you should also disredit everything they ever snark about The Ego okay? Cityfile.

Keith Olbermann took Times reporter Brian Stelter to task last night for reporting that News Corp. and GE had worked out a deal to tone down the rhetoric between MSNBC and Fox News. But he didn't disagree with everything Stelter reported. Conveniently, only the bad stuff about him was wrong.

But of course. See, Cityfile is just stupid.

More bad news for Olbermann: MSNBC now admits it made a mistake by not disclosing that Countdown fixture Richard Wolffe is a paid lobbyist. Naturally, Olbermann had absolutely no idea about any of this.

Look don't they realize that The Ego is a very busy man? Who has time for stupid things like vetting hosts?