Keith Olbermann Hits Conservative Trifecta: Names Bill O'Reilly, Sean Hannity, George Will Worst Persons

Keith Olbermann hit a conservative trifecta on Tuesday night's "Countdown," naming Fox News hosts Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity and Washington Post columnist George Will his three worst persons in the world.

Will took the bronze for his column suggesting that liberals are trying to reinstate the Fairness Doctrine, specifically to derail the right's hold on talk radio. However, as Olbermann pointed out, Will could not name any Democrat who pushed for the Fairness Doctrine because none have done so.

Hannity took the silver for complaining that Democrats rushed to indict Ted Stevens and vote him out of office, while it was Stevens himself who called for the speediest trial possible.

And O'Reilly took the gold for his ambush of New Yorker writer Rick Hertzberg, who O'Reilly claimed had rejected requests to appear on "The O'Reilly Factor." However, as Olbermann reports, Hertzberg and The New Yorker deny that he was ever invited, and say he will appear if asked.

Watch:

Comments

[VikingQuest]

Fox News & MSNBC are the same exact channel with different point of views.

If you think one tells the truth and the other lies . . . you fit right into their "I'm a political hack" democraphic.

[tom ellison]

It would be news if he picked three liberals. This is just par for the course. By the way, did he pick the gov of Illinois yet?

[chaz]

Wake up! Here we go again. Can't you see what's happening? The entire economy is going to hell but the Republicans are more concerned with weather or not the Democrats reinstate the Fairness Doctrine. Why? I'll tell you why. Nothing scares the Republican Party more than the reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine. They know if the Fairness Doctrine is reinstated they will lose their monopoly on the radio which is their greatest asset for spreading their lies and propaganda. So please contact your local representative and tell them to reinstate the Fairness Doctrine unless of course you believe being dixiechicked is a good thing.

[UltraClassic]

I would have thought for sure that the Ill Gov would have make this stupid list. But it is after all, stupid. BTW, KeithO can't hold a mental candle to George Will.

[onlinesavant]

No, he could'nt hold a candle to Will. I mean, searching for and telling the truth and all. Just not Will's racket at all.

[CatfishJohn]

...Wrong!... George will's Will's predictably formulaic essays in which he obfuscates with arcane, peripherally releveant references to obscure, almost trivial moments in u.s. history and then throws in a few 5 syllable words to show us he is facile with a thesauras have grown quite shallow...he hides a fundamentally misanthropic , right wing slant behind a by now tediously redundant intellectual -poseur essay writing method that belies what is in actuality the intellectually spent reagan-bush brand he has relfexively championed for 30 years.

[broezekiel]

Maybe he can't "hold a mental candle" to Will, but he sure nailed him on his slanted inaccuracies, which BTW are numerous.

[BPCentrisAmerican]

On Stephanopoulos, Paul Krugman put Will in the corner with a dunce hat, when Will tried to push the lame revisionist right-wing talking points on the Great Depression. I love it when Republicans get a memory loss as to what party Hoover belonged to, as did the 2 Presidents who proceeded him.

[Hank10303]

That is what keeps me coming back for more. Unlike republican programming that is full of opinion, innuendo and subject reasoning; Olberman relies on facts to make his points. That is news and news commentary. You can have your opinion but shouldn't' that opinion be grounded in fact. Its no surprise the three Republicans named were dishonest and disingenuous in their coverage and/or commentaries - its a trade mark of the republican party. Be a good Christian, a good republican and lie every chance you get.

[VikingQuest]

"Unlike republican programming that is full of opinion, innuendo and subject reasoning"

Are you that dumb that you didn't notice that Maddow, Hannity, O'Relly, Olbermann, etc. are all OPINION SHOWS?

[noamjunior]

um no- reporting facts you dont like doesn't make them "opinion shows"

[hjfraser2002]

I think the isue with at least Bill, is not an opinion but that he lied about the gentlemen being asked to come on the show. Also the worst was for the type of hit and run journalism that he practices with his cronies.

Are you dumb?

[Buddysingh]

Billo is a dirt bag.

[Hank10303]

I'm guessing you couldn't use the other word you really wanted to use

[zoog21]

Uhh...who cares?

[bogues]

Why does there have to be a war over all these television shows. It is a free country. Watch what you want to watch. If you do not like FOX don't watch it. Same goes for MSNBC. I would caution anyone out there who only watches one or the other. It is better to be fully informed than to be brainwashed by one point of view. I prefer MSNBC because they do get around to reporting all the news if you watch it long enough. They have programs that slant republican and they have programs that slant democrat. I have found very little on FOX that slants anyway other than republican but I am watching a little everyday because it is nesseccary in order to know what is being put out there.

[RedondoBeach]

In the 1970s, Keith Olbermann hosted a 5-minute sports recap show on local Los Angeles TV. His humor was even more sophomoric back then than it is now. At the same time, Jim Healy, on old-time grizzled sports commentator, hosted a 1-hour sports show on local radio. Here's what Healy said about Olbermann:

"Every time I see this guy on TV, I am reminded that somewhere in L.A. a McDonald's is missing a night manager."

Olbermann is just as big an egomaniac as O'Reilly. Note to both: you are not the news, you just present the news. Get over yourselves.

[FlamingLibrul]

If Keith is as inconsequential as you believe he is, you wouldn't have bothered commenting about him. The big, defining difference between Bill-O and Keith-O is that Keith has truth behind what he says.

Keith actually does something called research, instead of showing up in front of the camera to spout off made-up-fa­cts-disgui­sed-as-tru­th, based on personal opinion and outright pandering to a wingnut base. You know, like Bill-O's disgustingly fake "Outrage" over the supposed demise of Christmas.

[RedondoBeach]

Truth? Truth? What is this thing called truth? In the cases of O'Reilly and Olbermann, it is the selective culling of "facts" which support their point of view. Their incessant angry rants leave me cold.

But if I had to choose who was the least worst, it would be Olbermann.

[UltraClassic]

Regardless of your politics, that is the absolute truth. I do enjoy listening to the leftist point of view from such sources as PBS and the BBC. But MSNBC, lead by this former sportscasting clown has become a 3 ring circus for liberals. Why do liberals feel they must make fools of themselves the same way conservatives do?

[wendy31]

PBS is not liberal. It's centrist. I invite you to do some serious research on this fact.
It's fundamentally impossible for liberals to "make fools of themselves the same way conservatives do." We have a belief system that is about equality, fairness and truth...that stands in complete opposition to conservatives.

[BPCentrisAmerican]

I think ultra Classic is Bill'O's mini me, he loves to through that silly leftist label around like the "big head" dose. Classic do you really believe that nonsense or are you that paranoid. Anyway all the former communist leftist have gravitated to the GOP, Bill Kristol for one and David Horowitz for another, as a group there call neo-cons, if your a true conservative it's time clean house, neo-cons are not conservatives.

[hjfraser2002]

well at least you admited that conservirtives are fools. I disagree that liberals are like them.

[ccarmona]

Huh?? Wow, don't let the facts get in the way of your comment.
Keith was born in 1959, and didn't come to Los Angeles until the 1980s. He never hosted a five minute sports recap show, as he was part of the regular newscasts on KTLA and KCBS-TV.
Chick Hearn hosted a five minute sportscast, but that was in the 60s. .
Jim Healy was referring to Stu Nahan with that comment.

[Knowbetter]

pwned!

[sedum]

Redondo,

I'd say that if you've spent the last 30 plus years not liking Olbermann and still watch him, you have a bit of a problem m'boy.

Solution. Go "click"

[leftcoastindy]

Jim who? Which McDonald's does he manage? I'll go there to help him out if it will make you feel better about yourself.

[munki]

Bill perhaps is number ONE in ranking...
being named in any one of the worse worser and worst person in the world...
I see his face ALMOST on each and every show...
Am I wrong?

[leftcoastindy]

He doesn't make the list at least once a week.

[DemNY]

No just like almost every other night.

[timberdoodle]

It amazes me how people like Bill O the clown and Sean Hannity get away with spreading their lies and hate with impunity. This is especially true if you take into consideration the U.S. is ranked 43rd in the world wide freedom of the press rankings. Maybe it's just the truth the media has to suppress.

[cariintexas]

The rightwing needs somdeone to feed them their daily pablum, so they turn to the Fox crowd.

[hjfraser2002]

Alot of people don't shape their opinion by using facts, they shape the facts to support their opinion.

[Ramirez]

Bill, Sean, and George are reportedly crushed and humiliated by this public shaming.

The only good news for them was that so few Americans saw it.

[croneofcaulder]

more americans saw olberman than larry curly and shmoe!

[onlinesavant]

And we're all watching it on HuffPost with an average of 2.5 million hits per day I think.

[neenj]

Ramirez,

I just read your profile, and all I have to say is: you are a one bitter SOB.

Geez, you need prayer.

[DemNY]

Gee, and you sound so happy.

[Hank10303]

don't know if you are aware of it but Olberman has the hightest rating and is most watch during his time slot - a lot of Americans saw it.

[BSERIUS]

Your goofy,,,, Olberdouche has won his time slot a handful of times.

[jigen]

For everyone moaning about the fact there are worse people in the world than these (true point) you might stop and notice that Olbermann is clearly talking about figures in the media. The hint is in what all three do for a living... just wanted to point this out.

More bothersome is the continued misuse of "trifecta". Yes, Bush famously misused it, but that doesn't mean it therefore gains a new definition. A trifecta is a gambling term, wherein the bettor has to determine the first, second and third-place winners. A better term here might have been trio. Even triumvirate, which implies an association of three.

Not trifecta.

[jdmiller49]

Nice to see a wordsmith on the job. It also bothers me when three-pointers in basketball are called trifectas. A nerdy complaint, yes, but come on.

[Knowbetter]

"Hat Trick."

[steelerchicken]

Letterman and Leno each appeared on each other's shows. Why can't BillO and Keith do the same?

[situationcritical]

Liberals SHOULD reinstate the Fairness Doctrine.

[BPCentrisAmerican]

The Fairness Doctrine would not require any format change in anyone show, Hannity and Rush can continue spinning BS into what sound like common sense, Savage can continue yelling fire in a crowded theater and Ingrams can continue promoting the great liberal conspiracy, but station owners would be required to pick successful centrist and left leaning talkers who have been edged out, to offset this crap. I used to listen Jerry Springers radio show on Air America, and he attracted as many conservatives as liberals, and could talk them down. Big Eddie and Tom Hartman are really good at this and they take calls from uninformed wing-nuts all the time, not to beat them up, but get their points across. This is what the Fairness Doctrine would do, at least create a divesty of opinion to get people thinking, and for right wingers who depend on ignorance, this is frightening.