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| Image from source, NY Times |
MSNBC is trying to tempt me into making my "problem" worse, by debuting The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell. I like the host--who has appeared as both a guest and a host of the other two shows--for his wit, tenacity and big juicy brain. O'Donnell has worked both with the real Congress and the fictional, idealized White House (on The West Wing). So, while it will be tempting to expand my nightly news/commentary intake, I think I'm going to have to beg off. But I'm sure I'll sample it on occasion, and if something newsworthy comes out of the program, I'll feature clips here. Oh, and if The Other Half is away, I might get lured into watching live. But I wish O'Donnell luck, and ratings.
[Excerpt]
And in the Left Corner, Weighing In ...
“I’M one of those actors who finds the part in the wardrobe,” Lawrence O’Donnell said. “So this dressing like an anchorman thing is beginning to work. . .”
Read more at: New York Times
Lawrence O'Donnell's guest-hosting of "Countdown" was absolutely terrible. He mistakenly thought he could shout the headlines at the top of the show to make up for his weak voice. He gets overwrought about issues and has gone off the deep end several times, e.g., on "The McLaughlin Group" about Mitt Romney's Mormonism and on "Morning Joe" about 9/11. On the premiere of "The Last Word," he insipidly defended the Senate Democrats' decision not to vote on tax relief before the elections, got all fuddled up while reading the teleprompter at one point, lobbed softballs at Joe Biden, and came across as the ultimate insider. What viewers need and want is issues talk, not campaign strategy or inside-the-beltway lore. If his first show is any indication, O'Donnell won't last as long at MSNBC as Phil Donahue did.
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