MSNBC Expands Primetime, Gives O'Donnell 10 PM Slot

[DToTheJ]

This fall, MSNBC will replace the 10 PM ET "Countdown" rebroadcast with a new nightly show hosted by Lawrence O'Donnell, a network contributor who served as a frequent substitute host on "Countdown" for Keith Olbermann. (The nightly "Countdown" rerun will be bumped to 11 PM.)

Remarkably, O'Donnell has been associated with the network since its inception in 1996, when it launched as "America's Talking." O'Donnell says he is "thrilled to be going full time."

Full story:
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/453801-Lawrence_O_Donnell_Gets_10_P_M_on_MSNBC.php

 

[DToTheJ]

So it was 1996 that MSNBC officially launched. Thanks for the clarification.

I do remember Rush's syndicated show launched in 1992 and ended in 1996. Changed hands on several different affiliates, at least in New York.

 

[Ultimajock]

Point well taken. Of course, regular viewers and observers of cable news would be led to believe that it would be Lawrence O'Donnell, who - as pointed out above - has been a part-time veteran of MSNBC for nearly fifteen years, getting a nightly show on the network, as opposed to, say, Rosie O'Donnell.

...come to think of it, "O'Donnell" within a context indicating MSNBC could also have applied to Kelly O'Donnell or Norah O'Donnell, both NBC News correspondents and frequently seen faces on MSNBC (and Norah has been a regular substitute host on Hardball over the years as well)...

 

[DToTheJ]

Oh, snap... you're right! I can't believe I never realized this before, but there are three people named O'Donnell on the MSNBC payroll! Okay... had I realized that, I would have thrown in Larry's name in the title, but I had initiatied the thread with the impression that most people may have already been aware that it was indeed Larry, frequent "Countdown" substitute host, receiving the 10 PM show.

As far as Norah, last I read about her was that she was actually going to spend less time on-air on MSNBC to spend more time raising a family.

 

[PTBoardOp94]

I saw the title and immediately thought "Rosie"

 

[johnnyu]

Why in the world would anyone ever want to watch PMSNBC? Let's hope that COMCAST will completly redo said channel when they take over.

 

[DToTheJ]

As long as Fox News is successful, MSNBC will remain on the air with "the other side" of the news.

 

[DToTheJ]

Update: The new nightly MSNBC program to be hosted by Lawrence O'Donnell will debut September 27 and will be titled, "The Last Word":
http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/msnbc/lawrence_odonnell_show_gets_a_name_launch_date_168753.asp

Didn't Jim Rome used to host a show on Fox Sports Net titled "The Last Word"?

 

[Ultimajock]

Update: The new nightly MSNBC program to be hosted by Lawrence O'Donnell will debut September 27 and will be titled, "The Last Word":
http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/msnbc/lawrence_odonnell_show_gets_a_name_launch_date_168753.asp

Didn't Jim Rome used to host a show on Fox Sports Net titled "The Last Word"?

...indeed, he did. And before that, Phil Donahue and Greg Jackson did an ABC late-night talk show called The Last Word that ran from October 1982 to April 1983 after that network finally cancelled the last vestiges of Wide World of Entertainment/ABC Late Night...

 

[MsMusicRadio]

As long as Fox News is successful, MSNBC will remain on the air with "the other side" of the news.

I am watching MSNBC right now as I type

 

[LKellerIII]

As long as Fox News is successful, MSNBC will remain on the air with "the other side" of the news.

I agree. As CNN's recent ratings have shown, the way to success for cable news is slanted political commentary. Besides, it's a lot cheaper to produce than news programming. You can't out-right-wing Fox News, so it makes sense to make your network the voice of the left. And it fills a need in an era when so much radio and TV commentary is slanted to the right.

I doubt Comcast will mess with what appears to be a winning formula...at least so far.

 

[Dan76]

I agree. As CNN's recent ratings have shown, the way to success for cable news is slanted political commentary. Besides, it's a lot cheaper to produce than news programming. You can't out-right-wing Fox News, so it makes sense to make your network the voice of the left. And it fills a need in an era when so much radio and TV commentary is slanted to the right.

Radio I'll give you, but what TV commentary is slanted to the right, except some personalities at Fox News?

 

[LKellerIII]

I agree. As CNN's recent ratings have shown, the way to success for cable news is slanted political commentary. Besides, it's a lot cheaper to produce than news programming. You can't out-right-wing Fox News, so it makes sense to make your network the voice of the left. And it fills a need in an era when so much radio and TV commentary is slanted to the right.

Radio I'll give you, but what TV commentary is slanted to the right, except some personalities at Fox News?

OK...good catch....I should have stated my point more accurately. Granted, most TV news (CBS, NBC, ABC, and CNN) strives to be objective, and the majority of anchors and reporters are probably liberal, even though they generally succeed at reporting objectively, IMO. But conservative talk radio has become mostly a right-wing monolith, and I would say Fox News does not just have a few right-wing personalities, it's coverage is slanted to the right 24/7. Yes, they throw in the occasional liberal pundit, and Shep Smith is certainly not Sean Hannity. But on the whole, Fox News is a conservative news voice, and that, calls out for cable channel with an opposing point of view.

By the way, you can also count NBC's very own CNBC as generally conservative. It is pro-business, and most CNBC commentators would clearly be more comfortable with the Republicans in power.

 

[Dan76]

CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN MSNBC, are all left wing networks. They all basically gave Obama the election.