Dan Abrams Out; Rachel Maddow In

Dan Abrams will no longer be hosting his show on MSNBC at 8 p.m., effective this Thursday. He will be replaced, starting on September 8th by Rachel Maddow. Maddow, a liberal talk show host from Air America, has been filling in for Keith Olbermann with success in recent months. Abrams will now be designated to MSNBC Live duties as well serving as legal coorespondent for the network.

MSNBC on MSNBC... A Lot

If you are like me and enjoy the Olympic games and are lucky enough to have DVR, you might find yourself using the device so that you can catch as much of the games as you can. The past two mornings (Saturday and Sunday) I have set my DVR for the 4-8 a.m. coverage of the Olympics on MSNBC. What I noticed was something very surprising. At least 95% of the commercials on MSNBC Saturday morning were about the network itself (okay, okay...that is an exaggeration, but you get my point)!

I didn't think to do it on Saturday's coverage, but during today's coverage as I fast forwarded through the commercials I made sure to count each time the MSNBC Convention Coverage commercial appeared. In 4 hours or 240 minutes, the commercial aired 16 times. That's right... the same commercial appeared 4 times an hour (approximately). But that's not all. The ad either came at the beginning or the end of a three MSNBC ad block. In between were advertisements for Countdown or a profile of MSNBC hosts Andrea Mitchell, Keith Olbermann, or Chris Matthews or sometimes a MSNBC Documentary ad. That means that 12 MSNBC commercials ran PER HOUR.

This brings us to a grand total of 48 commercials in 4 hours soley from the network showing the Olympic coverage advertising itself. This isn't just a need to fill a void, however. The powers that be at MSNBC believe they can keep some of the Olympic audience around after the games... and if they do, it might just be the lift the 3rd place cable news network needs. Otherwise, they just lost a lot of potential revenue.

Olympics Alter MSNBC Schedule

It is exciting times around the world as the Olympics begin today. The opening ceremonies are actually taking place right now, but will be delayed and broadcasted in primetime on NBC, beginning at 6:30 central. Because of NBC's plans to air the Olympics on all its networks, MSNBC will not have daytime news during the Olympic games. MSNBC will run Olympic coverage from 4 am - 4 pm daily, followed by a daily wrap-up show hosted by MSNBC anchor Tamron Hall.

Normal MSNBC Primetime coverage will begin at 6 p.m., with Hardball. The remainder of the primetime schedule will continue like usual.

And They Say CNN Is Liberal...

Here is CNN as they covered Gramm's resignation.


Here is MSNBC's coverage.


We record, you decide. ;-)

Tim Russert: 1950-2008

As most of you know by now, Tim Russert, moderator of NBC's Meet The Press, passed away yesterday. I have been unable to be near a computer to blog this development, but TV Newser has been providing wall-to-wall coverage. You can check out TVNewser by clicking here.

Let me just take a moment and say that Tim Russert was one of my favorite political analysts. He will be greatly missed.

I am sorry I am away and not able to have blogged about this event earlier.

MSNBC: #1 in Primetime?

According to TV Newser, for the first time since October of 2001, MSNBC has placed #1 overall in primetime two nights in a row of regular newcasts in the advertising demo. The network has occasionally placed first on special nights, such as debates and specials, but this is the first time the network has placed 1st in the primetime demo in about 6 1/2 years.

We will have to see if these numbers continue. It is doubtful. Do keep in mind that Bill O'Reilly was out last week. The O'Reilly Factor numbers tend to pad the overall demo ratings in the evenings. Monday and Tuesday ratings should be available tomorrow.

Huckabee Joining NBC?

If McCain doesn't choose Mike Huckabee as his running mate, rumors are flying that he will likely join NBC as a political analyst for the network. He has been seen recently in some very high profile spots, including a gig as an MSNBC Insider on their primary coverage of West Virginia and most recently as a roundtable guest on Meet The Press. It will be interesting to see what becomes of this relationship should McCain go elsewhere for his VP.

I Guess The S In MSNBC is for Sports

MSNBC will be airing the US trials for the Olympic qualifiers on Sundays at 11 a.m. each week for the next 13 weeks leading up to the kick-off of the Olympic games. This weekend will be the first week, according to the press release from NBC. It will feature the women's marathon trials.

While it isn't news, I am thrilled that it isn't another edition of Lockup or MSNBC Investigates that the network is so famous for *insert sarcasm here*.

Breaking News... Genocide? Nope. Iraq War? Notta. A House on Fire in Oregon? Of course!

First of all... I am happy to report that Spud, a fellow blogger of TV News, is back up and running after taking a brief hiatus. Today, he was on "fire" about the decision of MSNBC to continually update its viewers on the status of a house on fire in Oregon.

He does a good job of analyzing the situation here. The bigger question that goes largely implied, but never really stated in this article is this: what qualifies as news on a cable network. I can guarantee you that if my house caught on fire, it would never make CNN, MSNBC, or FOX News. It would be lucky to make the local news.

CNN Programming Note

Wolf Blitzer announced this morning on his Sunday show "Late Edition" that he will be anchoring a special live Sunday night edition of "The Situation Room" at 7:00 tonight. I wonder if this has anything to do with the neck and neck race between MSNBC and CNN for the 2nd place spot in the 25-54 demo rating in March. Hmm...

MSNBC Employee Dead

Broadcasting and Cable reports that an MSNBC technical staff member was killed early Wednesday morning after leaving the station. She was on her way home following the network's primary coverage when she was killed. Details can be found here.

MSNBC's Osama/Obama Mix-Up

On Monday's edition of Hardball with Chris Matthews, a preview of a story about Barack Obama had a troubling graphic with it: the picture was of Osama Bin Laden. Later in the broadcast, the host was forced to apologize and the person who displayed the image has been dealt with accordingly, according to MSNBC. Media Matters has an article which displays the context in which this error transpired.

This error, coupled with additional ones by other news networks, only muddies the waters with the untrue rumors circulating the internet concerning Barack Obama's religious affiliation.

Update: He's Back (Before The Debate)

Broadcasting and Cable is reporting that David Shuster will be back from his suspension on February 22. Shuster was suspended "indefinitely" for referring to Chelsea Clinton being "pimped out" for her mother, trying to round up superdelegates.

This is significant because he is arriving back before the Ohio Democratic Debate set to air on MSNBC on the 26th. Clinton had earlier questioned participating in the debate. She now has relented and will take part.

To Talk Or Not To Talk: Shuster and "Pimpin' Out"

I have been debating all day whether or not to cover this story. Ultimately, it is a big news item and it definitely falls under my blog's jurisdiction. So, without further ado, here is the scoop.

MSNBC's David Shuster has been "suspended indefinitely" for comments made while filling in for Tucker Carlson on his show last week. So what is the comment?

Referring to Chelsea Clinton being used to call superdelegates on behalf of her mother Hillary, Shuster said "Doesn't it seem like Chelsea is sort of being pimped out in some weird sort of way?"

That phrase has created an uproar that is likely to intensify in the coming days, including the Clinton campaign's threat to cancel out of an upcoming MSNBC debate. Let the controversy continue...

News and Notes: New Debate, FOX in the Morning, and Chili Times at KSPR

A few quick items to pass along this morning:

1) Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have agreed to a debate that will air next Thursday from Austin on both CNN and Univision. The candidates have also agreed to an Ohio debate that will air on MSNBC later this month.

2) FOX in the Morning with Rob Evans debuted last Monday on KSFX (Ozarks FOX). What are your thoughts on the show? I had a chance to catch part of it yesterday morning (due to the weather) and I will fill you in on my $.02 later.

3) Finally, it has been chili around KSPR lately... literally. The winner of the station's recent cook-off is none other than weekend anchor Michelle Sherwood. She blogs about her recent taste of victory (complete with a trophy picture) here.

Big Tuesday for Cable News!!!

The results are in and CNN is the clear frontrunner for political coverage. Super Tuesday handily went to CNN. According to TV Newser, CNN averaged 3.6 million viewers in primetime. FOX News followed behind with 3.4 million, MSNBC pulled a strong 2.1 million, while CNN Headline News limped along with 575,000 viewers in primetime.

MSNBC's Chris Jansing Moving

The last of the true MSNBC anchors will be leaving to become NBC's LA-Based Coorespondent. Inside Cable News has an amazing piece on what her departure means for MSNBC, while reviewing all she has accomplished on the network. There is no word on when Jansing's last anchor day will be. She was seen anchoring on MSNBC this afternoon.

Hillary Wins; McCain and Huckabee Down To The Wire

All of the news networks called Hillary's Nevada win a few hours ago.

Now the focus turns to South Carolina where it looks to be extremely close between John McCain and Mike Huckabee. Polls close there at 6:00 local time. The News2K will be following this story throughout the evening.

Cable news networks main anchors covering the primary:

MSNBC: Chris Matthews and Keith Olbermann
CNN: Wolf Blitzer
FOX News: Brit Hume

Nevada Republican Caucus: FOX News and MSNBC Call Race; CNN Finally Joins It

**UPDATE** CNN has finally called the Nevada Caucus for Mitt Romney at 1:00 p.m. If it took them this long to call Nevada for the Republicans, it may be a long afternoon for the Democratic Caucus... not to mention the SC GOP Primary.

FOX News and MSNBC called the Republican caucus concerning Nevada at the beginning of the 12:00 hour. Still, at 12:45 p.m., CNN has not called the race. Entrance poll data from CNN has this a close race between Romney and Ron Paul. Is that why CNN is holding the call? More as it develops...

MSNBC is heading to 30 Rock

MSNBC will begin airing from 30 Rock in NYC ending its decade long run at a separate facility in New Jersey. MSNBC will now just be feet away from the NBC Nightly News Desk. This will likely create the synergy MSNBC has been lacking for years.