TVSquad

The "Balloon Boy" incident, the cleanest name I can give this monumental media f#*$#-up, sounded vaguely familiar to me. In fact, it sounded more like the setup to a classic joke with an incredibly unfunny punchline.

It seems the folks at Countdown with Keith Olbermann noticed that as well and turned the whole thing into another umpteenth retelling of the classic "Aristocrats" joke. If you're not familiar with the infamous joke about a family walking into a talent agent's office, search for it on YouTube. But don't come whining to me that your ears won't stop bleeding.

The Los Angeles Times made a rather humorous error in their TV listings and some, depending on what they personally think of MSNBC talking head Keith Olbermann, may not have noticed the difference.

Their TV listings for Thursday listed Jackass in the time slot where Countdown with Keith Olbermann should have been. The paper issued a correction the following day, disappointing thousands of easily hammered frat boys (including me) who thought MTV's nightly cavalcade of nut shots and poo fights had returned to television on another network.

Olbermann was OK with the mistake until one of the paper's bloggers used it as a political parry against him and his network. That launched the MSNBC host into a personal tirade against the blogger and anything else that happened to saunter into the path of Olbermann's angry spittle cannon.

Keith Olbermann! Come on down! You're the next TV celebrity whose death has been falsely reported on the Internet!

The MSNBC Countdown's Wikipedia page reported he had died earlier this morning, possibly due to complications from celiac disease.

I sent emails to two networks officials to confirm this jarring claim. Jeremy Gaines, MSNBC's vice president of communications, responded that he is certain the entry is a "hoax" and that he and other network officials were working to correct it. The section on Olbermann's death has since been removed from the page.

• At 7, CBS has a new 60 Minutes, then new episodes of Big Brother and Cold Case, then an episode of Dexter.
• NBC has the fifth anniversary Countdown with Keith Olbermann special at 7, followed by a new Dateline.
• At 8, FOX has a new Simpsons, then a new King of the Hill.
• ABC has a new Extreme Makeover at 8, followed by new episodes of Oprah's Big Give and Here Come The Newlyweds.
• There's a new Everybody Hates Chris on The CW at 8.
• Also at 8: Cartoon Network has a new My Gym Partner's A Monkey.
• At 9, PBS has a new Masterpiece.
• HBO has another installment of John Adams at 9.
• The CW has a new episode of The Game at 9.
• Showtime has the season premiere of The Tudors, also at 9.
• At 9:30, FOX has the season (series?) finale of Unhitched.
• At 10, Food Network has a new Throwdown with Bobby Flay.
• FX has a new Dirt at 10.
• At 11:30, Cartoon Network has the Aqua Teen Hunger Force movie.

Check your local TV listings for more.

Longtime NBC Washington correspondent Chip Reid is leaving the network, and the rumor is he's going over to CBS News. Reid has been covering politics for the network for several years.

And that's not the only news for NBC. MSNBC's Countdown with Keith Olbermann is getting some airtime on NBC. The show will air before this Sunday's pre-season game between the Eagles vs. the Steelers. This probably won't be a regular thing, but Olbermann is going to be part of the network's Football Night In America show on Sunday nights, and NBC Senior Vice President Phil Griffin says that Olbermann might do more on the network.

The ratings for Olbermann's show have soared, and maybe NBC is using this as an extra kick in the pants to see if viewers will follow the show over to MSNBC the following night.

[via TV Newser]

I just saw this mentioned on Countdown with Keith Olbermann. He named KCAL's Dave Clarke as a "Worst Person in the World" for his incredibly amateurish, lame, and cringe-inducing work in this news story. He decided to break the news about actor Bruno Kirby's death to celebrities at a premiere that either knew him and/or worked with him, Most of them didn't even know that Kirby had died, and they are truly shocked and saddened by his death, especially Jennifer Tilly. Listen to the way he just casually says "yeah, he died!" to the interviewees. A truly crass job.

Oh, and it's Robert DAVI, not Dabi. Jeez.