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Tom Hoffarth can be reached at [email protected] or (818) 713-3661.
They hired him 18 months ago to a multimillion-dollar contract specifically to boost the credibility and exposure of their nightly sports report. So why now will the execs at Fox Sports Net be content with having poster boy Keith Olbermann on as a once-a-week fixture?
Because, Fox Sports chief David Hill says, this is "an attempt to redefine sports journalism."
And because, Hill adds, "In TV, you gotta be like a shark - move or else you'll die."
And because, those who need to speculate will say, Olbermann has worn out his welcome already and this is a way to separate him from the rest of the children.
"That's total crap," Hill responded Thursday during a conference call during the announcement of what will be called "The Keith Olbermann Evening News," a multifaceted, one-hour sports news and interview show starting Sunday, Aug. 6, in the 10 p.m. time slot.
The name, by the way, is meant to be silly and serious. Take your pick.
Either way, Hill admits he wasn't totally happy with the way Fox Sports News had been evolving, even with Olbermann's presence, which is why "NFL on Fox" Sunday-morning show producer Scott Ackerson was brought on board about four months ago to revamp it into what's now called "The National Sports Report."
With that part of the plan in place, Fox can afford to branch Olbermann off into his own show, of which he'll also be executive producer. It will also fill a void of Sunday-night sports TV programming that has yet to be defined clearly in this information age of knowing game results hours before the news shows come on.
The approach will be to replace the usual "National Sports Report" hour with Olbermann's sports-news segment, followed by analysis, opinions, interviews and essays. One-stop shopping, kinda like the old "Nightly News" shows the networks did in the '60s and '70s.
"It may sound as arrogant and egotistical as I've ever been, but this is the one show you should watch if you only watch one sports show," Olbermann said. "The idea is I don't think there's...