For anyone who doesn't remember when Olbermann LOVED the Clintons, here's a reminder:

[jenmito]

9/27/07-Bill Clinton interview: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21020060/

10/11/07-Hillary Clinton interview: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21255520/

Olbermann only turned on Hillary when she started playing the RW "fear card." It had nothing to do with being a "shill" for anyone. He's just being consistent with his beliefs.

[CitizenLeft]

1. not to mention the fact that, during the impeachment...

...he was beside himself with anger and every single night DEFENDED Bill Clinton. He was so pissed off his voice would shake.

Give me a break.

[Barrymores Ghost]

3. There was no bigger defender of both Clintons... (K&R)

...than Keith Olbermann, back in the day when what they were doing was actually defensible.

Now, it isn't.

And, now, he's not.

it's just that simple, and the howls of protestation we hear from Hillary's unrepentant defenders is the projected manifestation of a lot of cognitive dissonance.

[jenmito]

6. Thank you. That's right...

how people forget (or misremember?). :D

[dchill]

53. One should always misremember...

before one misspeaks. Excellent post, you are doing good work here. :hi:

[jenmito]

59. Of course!

And thanks! :hi:

[CitizenLeft]

11. very well said.

It's as simple as that.

[jenmito]

4. I remember him talking about how he HATED having to cover that!

But the Hillary supporters won't buy it.

[mopinko]

14. on what show?

i never saw him before countdown, which is celebrating their 5th anniversary.

[CitizenLeft]

27. he had a show called... heck, I can't remember now...

...I had to look it up on Wiki, I couldn't remember the name of the show:

First NBC stint
In 1997, Olbermann left ESPN to host his own primetime show on MSNBC, The Big Show with Keith Olbermann. The news-variety program covered three or four topics in a one-hour broadcast. Olbermann also occasionally hosted the weekend edition of NBC Nightly News, and, along with Hannah Storm, co-hosted NBC Sports’ pre-game coverage of the 1997 World Series.

See also: Major League Baseball on NBC
When the Monica Lewinsky scandal broke in 1998, the show morphed into White House in Crisis. Olbermann became frustrated as his show was consumed by the Lewinsky story. In 1998, he stated that his work at MSNBC would "make me ashamed, make me depressed, make me cry."<5>

[dchill]

54. The Big Show...

which he eventually walked away from because of the constant Lewinsky coverage that he was forced to do. Hillary's dittoes can't - or won't - see that.

[featherman]

2. This is correct... he was slanted for Clinton until sometime in January

This is a matter of public record luckily... easily researched on tape

[ksoze]

8. payback for Shuster stuff

he was pissed about the Chelsea flap and Davids' suspension. Sure seemed about that time when he went off the graph oh Hillary.

[jenmito]

12. Wrong. It was when Hillary played the FEAR CARD.

He hates that.

[TheWraith]

16. It wasn't that, and frankly I don't think he was slanted in favor of Clinton.

Remember, he was the one who apologized on-air for the phrase Schuster used. He made every effort to be fair and impartial in his coverage up to a point.

I think it started with some of the smearing before SC, but it was definitely the playing of the fear card that opened up the floodgates for him, and made him realize if he wasn't calling bullshit, than he was basically being like the right-wing newscasters.

[Barrymores Ghost]

20. He was the first one to publicly apologize and to call Schuster onto the carpet...

...nonetheless, Schuster's words were conveniently twisted in order to score cheap political points for Hillary, when the fact remains that Chelsea was out there stumping like a big adult, except that she would not allow the media to ask her anything.

This ties in with the Clintons' long-standing tendency to alienate members of the press, and their inability to play media-savvy...not a skill set that a serious presidential candidate should be missing from the old tool chest.

Guess she wanted to have the protective buffer afforded a child and a still be a shill for Mommy at the same time. Schuster saw through it and called them on it (albeit with a less-than-savvy choice of words), and that pissed off the Clinton Machine to a fair-thee-well.

[jenmito]

32. Exactly.

I'm glad SOMEONE remembers.

[jenmito]

10. He sure was. But I still respected him and loved his Special Comments.

I didn't start accusing him of all sorts of bull.

[JerseygirlCT]

43. Yes, actually

I remember thinking "oh, I see Keith's supporting Clinton" back then. I hadn't made a choice yet myself at that point - so I thought that interesting.

[Barrymores Ghost]

5. As concise and to-the-point a top-post as I've seen.

Kudos, jenmito.

[jenmito]

9. Thanks!

Again! :hi:

[stop the bleeding]

7. There you go again providing links and facts to back up your points

instead of just talking out your arse.

:beer:

[jenmito]

15. Sorry. I can't help it!

That's what I do! :D

[Hepburn]

13. Thanks, Jen....good info and a K&R for your thread!

BTW: The dog ate all the roasted chicken and tomato pizza! Well, I did have a slice or two...but she ate most of it. Well, actually, she only had one piece and I ate the rest. But is seemed like she ate all of it and I really, really did not blow my diet....I just misremembered....

You like my imitation of Hillary backing off a phony story? :evilgrin:

[jenmito]

21. Thanks, Hepburn!

:hi: Thanks for the update! :D Yes, nice use of the word. I just used a similar word in a post here! GMTA!

[papau]

17. Nonsense - KO bought and resold Bill the racist card player/Hillary not controlling her racist

friends on purpose -

and ignored the fact that it was just Obama changing the subject from Hillary's win in NH so that she would get no momentum from that win.

David did a good smear job for Obama - just as Obama had requested.

And KO sold it as racist/insensistive Clinton's trying to screw with the minds of the 57% of the SC vote that was black - as if that was even logical.

KO is a GE shill - nothing more.

[jenmito]

23. You're full of it.

[BeyondGeography]

18. I stopped watching him for awhile because his Hillary love-ins with Craig Crawford were unbearable

Crawford's still in the bag for the Clintons so you don't see him on KO anymore.

[jenmito]

25. Crawford is one million percent in the bag for Hillary, but I still watched the show.

I'm not going to call Keith anything but extremely fair and brilliant.

[peoli]

19. Thanks! I remember he didnt METION OBAMA for almost all 2007

It was so aggrivating.

[jenmito]

28. No problem! I remember that, too. But I didn't turn on Keith and start calling him

all sorts of ridiculous names.

[MadBadger]

22. During Iowa he constantly would bring up the fact that Obama barely won the vote among Dems

It felt like he was cheapening Obama's win to make it seem like he didnt beat Hillary by that much.

[jenmito]

29. I remember those days when he really favored Hillary.

I didn't turn on him, though.

[Tatiana]

24. K&R. Keith drew the line at fearmongering.

If anyone has been listening to his reporting or his special comments or his Bushed! segments, you will know that one thing he absolutely detests about the current administration is the fearmongering. From Bush to Cheney to Rumsfeld he has slammed them all, including Ari "watch what you say" Fleischer. So to see a person that he clearly supported late last year, cut the 3 A.M. ad and use the same tactic in her own campaign... I think Olbermann found this despicable and that explains the disdain that is apparent in his coverage of Team Clinton.

I don't have a problem with it because there are facts to support his rationale. So often the conservative media feels as if fairness is presenting two opposing viewpoints and giving them equal weight. But there's a problem with that. It's like the climate issue. Climate change is a FACT that is easily proven. But you have these loony right-wingers who believe it's fiction.

"Some scientists across the world believe Congress must act to protect the environment from looming disaster due to climate change."

"Citing new studies, that viewpoint is challenged by other scientists at the Heritage Foundation who contend there is no evidence of climate change at all."

That's often where the media leaves it, not providing the context of why it is more logical to believe climate change exists. I think there is a place for journalists to fill in that context and they should. Keith is, in his opinion, providing the context for the stories he covers. Maybe it's too much context. However, to say that he's out to get Clinton when he has favored and been very gracious to both Bill and Hillary in the past isn't fair.

[jenmito]

30. Exactly.Good post!

:hi:

[Cha]

26. Thanks, jenmito, for this..put that baby to rest.

I remember in the beginning of the campaign there were posts on here that thought KO was actually pro hilary and I couldn't wrap my head around that one.

[jenmito]

31. No problem!

I think he WAS pro-Hillary in the beginning 'til the fear-mongering stuff!

[Cha]

33. She even had KO

fooled..my how they lost it when they went the rove playbook way.

[jenmito]

35. Exactly. I'm glad he finally saw the truth and wasn't afraid to call her on it!

[Berry Cool]

34. Thank you, jenmito.

People have short memories. But it seems like only yesterday that I was reading posts about Keith being a hopeless "Hill shill." Now all I see is people calling him "Obamann."

It's as if they can't conceive of someone actually trying to just report what he sees.

[jenmito]

36. Yup. I remember those days, too...

and I didn't turn on him like the Hillary supporters are now doing.

[mzmolly]

37. Olbermann is saying what be thinks. I don't ever want him to stop doing that.

Even if I disagree with him.

Thanks for the reminder Jenmito.

[jenmito]

39. I agree. And I didn't hold it against him back then.

You're welcome! :hi:

[jenmito]

38. kick since the Olbermann haters are at it again

[Occam Bandage]

40. KO was a big pro-Clinton-anti-Puke guy, up until the Clintons made it hard to tell the difference.

[jenmito]

41. CORRECT!

:hi:

[JerseygirlCT]

42. Yes. I don't understand this deeply entrenched need to ignore

reality. He's not keen on them because their behavior has been nothing to feel good about. He's the same person he's been. The same one people raved about and lauded to the skies. Suddenly he doesn't much like the way the Clintons are acting and it can't be because they're acting very badly indeed -- it MUST be because he's changed radically and become a shill.

It's just not logical.

[jenmito]

48. Exactly.

I'm glad you noticed it, too.

[wowimthere]

44. K&R

[jenmito]

49. Thanks, wowimthere!

:hi:

[redqueen]

45. Thank you!

K&R

[jenmito]

50. You're welcome!

And thank YOU! :hi:

[redqueen]

56. Pleasure's all mine!

:hi:

:kick:

[jenmito]

57. I disagree.

It's mine, too. :D :hi:

[H2O Man]

46. Keith O

actually was supporting Senator Clinton until mid-January '08.

[jenmito]

51. Yup. He stopped only when she started with the RW tactics...

You KNOW he hates when people play the fear card.

[eissa]

47. I am Keith

and so were many of my acquaintances up until late '07. I wasn't thrilled with her candidancy, but Hillary was the presumed nominee and I supported her because I loved the Clintons. I spent most of the 90s defending them. But once I was able to really hear Obama's message and got to know him, I became really enthusiastic and hopeful that we had a nominee I could really get behind.

[jenmito]

52. I know people who say the exact same thing.

:hi:

[Umbram]

55. He's in many HRC supporters' rear view mirror with tire tracks over his back already. (nt)

[hell-bent]

58. No, he turned on Hillary

when the rest of the whores over there on MSGOP accepted their marching orders from GE(NBC). He didn't have the backbone to stand up to his superiors and the likes of Tweety and Russert. I faithfully watched him every fucking night until he turned like a slimy snake on the Clintons. He could have been a real man and a TV journalist by remaining neutral on the air. But, oh no...Keith joined in on the bashing of the Clintons and the protecting of his Majesty,BO. Fuck him......

[jenmito]

60. That's bull.

I watched him every night when he was supporting Hillary and still do. He turned on her because SHE turned into a RWer-type campaigner. He was not neutral. He had both Clintons on his show with friendly interviews and did NOT have Obama on. Get real.

[hell-bent]

63. Could you list those "RWer-type campaign tactics"?

You mean like Obama's race baiting in South Carolina? Yes, the Clintons were looked upon as real racists before the Obama crew started their stirring of the pot.:sarcasm:

[jenmito]

65. Playing the fear card was the first one that got Keith calling her out.

Nobody called the Clintons "racists." But they DID race-BAIT. Two different things. Then the Muslim implication. I'm sure there are more things I'm leaving out.

[azmouse]

61. kicked

[Patsy Stone]

62. Could it be

The reporting of positive stories about the candidates actually involves candidates doing something positive?

:shrug:

[jenmito]

66. Yes, it could be.

(I love your sig line pic of that show-I forget the name-Science Fiction Theater 5000 or something?) :D

[Patsy Stone]

68. Ah...

Mystery Science Theater 3000. Joy.

[jenmito]

70. Thank you!

I just couldn't think of the name! :hi:

[Kurovski]

72. Those little robots were very snarky.

I don't think sarcasm has any place in true humor. I prefer a good "knock-knock" joke, and I know you do as well.

Patsy, I'm surprised you would carry around an image of those nasty, smart-mouthed, bickering little puppets.

[Patsy Stone]

73. Please...

Fart jokes, not Knock Knock jokes. I have my principles.

:loveya:

[Kurovski]

76. And now that I think of it, those little robots

...were also kind of sexy. :hi:

[nomaco-10]

64. Many of us "used" to love the clintons,......

but we're mostly alot of political junkies here that pursue the truth in our spare time, and have come to the conclusion, that hil and bil didn't pan out to be what they were supposed to be in the early 80's.

It just took some of us longer than others.

[jenmito]

67. Yup, as did I...

I loved Bill Clinton and Hillary's my Senator. Now I can't stand either of 'em.

[hell-bent]

75. Are you a fickle person by nature?

Or, are you easily taken in by lofty oratory? Could you list some of BO's accomplishments since he decided to become a politician?

[hell-bent]

74. Yes, you and the Rethugs are the "pursuers of truth"!

You and Rush, Hannity, and all the other Repukes have now determined that the Clinton years were just terrible because they just didn't "pan out".......WTF!

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

69. He was also called a "Hillary shill" right here on DU.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=3947308

[jenmito]

71. Ahhh. Thanks for the flashback! I made a comment on that thread to a Hillary fan who never replied

Thanks for the proof! :hi:

[Melynn]

77. Maybe Olbermann is just a front runner

He supports who ever is in the lead.

He's in the media which means that he is bought and paid for. Screw him.