REPORT: ESPN to Announce The Return of Keith Olbermann

Three different mainstream publications are reporting it and I received a “can’t comment” from an ESPN spokesman, which means this must be true. This is not a sign of the apocalypse nor does it mean that California is about to tumble into the sea. Jon Weisman at Variety, ESPN Tome author Jim Andrew Miller in the New York Times and Marisa Guthrie at the Hollywood Reporter write that ESPN will announce later today that the man who was said to not have burned bridges in Bristol, but napalmed them, will return to the network he helped launch back in October 1993.

Yes, Keith Olbermann is about to be named as the host of a new late night talk show on ESPN2. No premiere date has been set as of yet. Olbermann will return to sports this October as host of TBS’ MLB Postseason coverage, a gig that he could return to next year as well.

According to Miller in the Times, Olbermann’s show will shy away from the political arena where Keithy has been sowing his oats for MSNBC and then Current since 2003. Miller writes that the new show will be a mix of sports and current events. Olbermann’s contract is expected to run two years.

Guthrie in the Hollywood Reporter notes the ESPN2 show will be aired from ABC News’ Nightline Times Square studios in New York City, distancing him from ESPN’s Bristol, CT world headquarters.

Since before the 2012 election, K.O. has been off television, settling a lawsuit over his Current contract, a battle that ended last year.

Rumblings of Olbermann’s return to ESPN2 were heard in March when Miller in the New York Times reported of a dinner between K.O. and network president John Skipper. Back then, Skipper said, “…there was no real appropriate place for Keith to come back, nor did I feel like I was prepared to bring him back.”

However, it appears Skipper has found the appropriate place and is prepared to bring Olbermann back. Whether this stint will work or end like his first term in Bristol is unknown at this time. It will be interesting to have Olbermann back in the sports media.

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.

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