FOK News Channel for Tuesday, April 26th, 2011

Keith Announces New Show Details
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unofficial transcript

This is Keith Olbermann with a very special announcement about my nightly television newscast, about what it's called, and when it will start.

I wanted to go somewhere where I could expand on and enlarge upon the work I'd already done, a place where journalistic integrity and analytical honesty would never be compromised by corporate synergy, a place where no one would ever proclaim the ultimate dishonesty: that balancing a lie for every truth was somehow fair. I found that place in Current TV.

And even though they had told me I'd be in charge, and they gave me a title, and an equity stake, and a PONY, I have still been delightfully startled at the free hand I've been given to assemble the finest staff on air and off in television news, details about which we will give you in the coming weeks.

And now I can tell you, we are ready to go.

I've been vague all year about when exactly we'll start on Current TV. I kept saying "late spring." I haven't been trying to be cute or inexact, we just wanted to line everything up first. Now, we have. I can now tell you that my nightly news hour will begin live at 8 PM Eastern, 5 PM Pacific, on the night of Monday, June 20th, 2011.

I know. That's as late spring as you can get. That's why I said "late spring!"

That's the when, now the what. We considered a lot of names for the new show on Current, but quickly it became clear that only one of them conveyed what I want the program to be, what it was obvious in a thousand conversations with many of you personally, what the viewers want the new program to be. So we will bring you, at 8 PM Eastern, 5 PM Pacific, on the night of Monday, June 20th, 2011, my new news hour... Countdown with Keith Olbermann! Hey, if it ain't broke don't fix it.

Merely by moving to my new home on Current I know the new show will improve. We will also increase the program's edge, and the pointedness of its commentary. But I'm going to call it Countdown, so you know that this decision protects the editorial independence that makes it possible for me to do this work. We will be at Current now, we have not gone and are not going anywhere. And we're really, really glad you are going to continue to be with us. The dude, as it were, abides.

Two more announcements. We keep being asked about Countdown's online presence at Current. We'll go into specifics later, but trust me, it will have a huge footprint on the net and for the first time significant web-only content including video. And I also keep being asked about replays. Well, if the show is going to be on live at 8 PM Eastern nightly, and it's going to be called Countdown, it has to also be on at 11 PM Eastern, 8 Pacific and at 2 AM Eastern, 11 Pacific.

So there it is. Sorry to keep you waiting. Countdown, weeknights at 8, 11 and 2 Eastern, 5, 8 and 11 Pacific, beginning on Monday, June 20th. And only on Current TV.

See you late spr- no. See you June 20th!