“Olbermann” to Debut on August 26 on ESPN2

Well, what was thought was truly impossible even as soon as last year has now become a reality, Keith Olbermann will officially return to ESPN2 on August 26 with the premiere of his new late night show titled “Olbermann” (besides, Countdown has been taken already).

The show is supposed to premiere at 11 p.m. ET, but with the U.S. Open on the same night on ESPN2, the premiere could be pushed back. In fact, “Olbermann” could be delayed for its first two weeks due to the U.S. Open.

This program will air live from ABC’s Times Square studios in New York City so Keith will not step foot in the ESPN Bristol, CT headquarters unless he’s picking up a check. According to the press release, it will be a mix of sports, interviews, panel discussions and highlights. Of course, the show will run opposite SportsCenter on ESPN which has its own mix of sports, interviews, panel discussions and highlights.

And the show will go on hiatus in October while Olbermann moves to TBS for the month to host the MLB Postseason.

Here’s the official announcement which many sports media observers (including yours truly) thought would never happen in our lifetimes.

ESPN2 LogoOlbermann Returning to ESPN2 with Daily Late-Night Show Aug. 26

Hour-long Olbermann at 11 p.m. ET live from New York studios

Keith Olbermann - January 13, 1996

Keith Olbermann hosting SportsCenter (1996), Courtesy: ESPN Images

Keith Olbermann, who worked for ESPN from 1992-1997, will return to the company with a late-night program Monday-Friday on ESPN2, starting Monday, Aug. 26, it was announced by ESPN President John Skipper. Titled Olbermann, the show will generally be presented at 11 p.m. ET from ABC’s Times Square studios in New York City.

The program will focus on the day’s relevant sports topics through a mix of perspective and commentary, interviews, contributors, panel discussions and highlights.

“Keith is a one-of-a-kind personality and these shows will be appointment viewing for that very reason,” Skipper said. “Keith brings a blend of editorial sophistication and unpredictability — you can never be sure what you’ll get. Olbermann on ESPN2 gives viewers the quality late-night complement to ESPN’s SportsCenter in the same way we’ve developed distinct show options across our networks the rest of the day.”

Olbermann noted: “Apart from the opportunity to try to create a nightly hour of sports television that no fan can afford to miss, I’m overwhelmed by the chance to begin anew with ESPN. I’ve been gone for 16 years and not one day in that time has passed without someone connecting me to the network. Our histories are indelibly intertwined and frankly I have long wished that I had the chance to make sure the totality of that story would be a completely positive one. I’m grateful to friends and bosses – old and new – who have permitted that opportunity to come to pass. I’m not going to waste it.”

More details about the show, including additional contributors, will be announced in the coming weeks. Similar to SportsCenter on ESPN, Olbermann will often immediately follow live events on ESPN2 (starting with US Open tennis Aug. 26), leading to some flexibility in the show’s start times depending on the length/timing of the events.

About Keith Olbermann

Keith Olbermann’s sportscasting resume dates back more than 40 years, and begins with Chris Berman selecting him as his assistant at their high school radio station in Tarrytown, N.Y. In 1979, Olbermann would move directly from Cornell to network radio and, at the age of 22, to CNN Sports. He spent the rest of the ’80s reshaping local television sportscasting at major stations in Boston and Los Angeles, and then joined ESPN for the first time in 1992. Apart from his signature work as co-host of the 11 p.m. “Big Show” SportsCenter, Olbermann helped to launch ESPN Radio and ESPN2, and won the ACE Award as the nation’s top cable sportscaster in 1995. He left ESPN in 1997 and would host the World Series for NBC that year and Fox in 2000, before rejoining ESPN in 2005 as a daily radio contributor. From 2007 through 2009 he was the co-host of NBC’s Football Night In America, and earlier this year he was named as studio host of post-season baseball coverage on TBS.

There you have it.

About Ken Fang

Ken has been covering the sports media in earnest at his own site, Fang's Bites since May 2007 and at Awful Announcing since March 2013. He provides a unique perspective having been an award-winning radio news reporter in Providence and having worked in local television. Fang celebrates the three Boston Red Sox World Championships in the 21st Century, but continues to be a long-suffering Cleveland Browns fan.

Quantcast