MSNBC nearly tapped Keith Olbermann to fill Rachel Maddow's soon-to-be-vacant primetime slot, but Maddow personally made sure her former mentor didn't get the job.
Olbermann, who helped develop the network's voice before he was ousted in 2011, told The Daily Beast's "Source Material" that he was deep into negotiations with NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell and news chief Cesar Conde to return to MSNBC in the 9 p.m. weeknight spot before Maddow intervened.
“I offered to have her production company ‘produce’ the show," Olbermann said. "Would give her some proxy control and a f*ckton of money but she and [former MSNBC chief-turned-consultant to Maddow’s production company] Phil Griffin refused."
“I do not expect to continue negotiations with the successors to this management team,” he added. “Management is worse than asleep at the switch.”
Maddow recently signed a $30 million deal to transition out of her nightly broadcast, and Olbermann said she personally vetoed him as a replacement.
The former Air America radio host will end her long-running show this spring and turn to helping NBCU develop podcasts, documentaries, and other multimedia projects.
