Man, how low must the ratings of MSNBC’s Countdown with Keith Olberman n fallen?!? After all, we can only imagine the host’s random, personal attacks against ESPN.com columnist Bill Simmons stem from a need to garner attention. You can get caught up on the feud HERE , but in a nutshell: Simmons wrote an article in which he said the upcoming Tiger Woods comeback would be more challenging than the boxing return of Muhammad Ali in the early 1970s, which was a result of the latter’s stance on the Vietnam war. It was a controversial stance, one clearly meant to elicit opinion and feedback. That’s often a columnist’s job. But Olbermann didn’t attack the content of the argument, he attacked Simmons himself. At first, the MSNBC anchor wrote that Simmons had no “discernible insight or talent.” To this insult, Bill Tweeted that Olbermann is “a pious, unlikable blowhard who lives alone.” He has since left it alone, Tweeting again last night: I’ve said enough. This was not why I got into writing. But Olbermann, for whatever reason, is just getting started. In a new online rant , Olbermann writes: “Anybody who could write as many words without saying anything of consequence really should throw around the word “blowhard” as frequently as he would a street sewer cover.” Olbermann also claims he’s received emails from those high up at ESPN “thanking me for pointing out the absurdity of, and the embarrassment to ESPN provided by, the Woods/Ali comparison.” He then implies that Simmons is the most “uncontrollable, unmanageable talent” in the history of ESPN and that any comment defending The Sports Guy on Olbermann’s blog must be written by Simmons himself “under various identities.” It’s hard to even know where to begin in response to Olbermann’s utter nonsense: First, feel free to dislike the niche Simmons has created. But he’s the most read online columnist alive. His most recent book was number-one on The New York Times Bestsellers List. To claim that any defense of Simmons can only be penned by the man himself is laughable. He’s hugely popular, Keith. That’s just a fact. Live with it. In this feud Olbermann has concocted, he’s written about 500 words. Simmons has written about 12. The latest rant comes immediately after a section of his blog in which Olbermann discusses his gravely ill father. That’s… strange. As for the content of Simmons’ article, Olbermann continues to miss the point: No one is placing Tiger and Ali’s reasons for exile on the same level; Simmons is focusing on the difficulty each faced upon their return, relative to the public sentiment at the time. IF YOU DON’T LIKE BILL SIMMONS, DON’T READ HIM. Sorry, we got carried away with that last point. But Olbermann is entitled to his opinion. Still, that doesn’t explain his petty, public, unprofessional response. Actually, maybe it does: Olbermann simply is petty and unprofessional.
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Keith Olbermann Continues to Slam Bill Simmons
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