Anderson Cooper, Dr. Mehmet Oz
Jeopardy! has assembled Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Anderson Cooper and Dr. Oz, among others, for the game show's upcoming Power Players Week.
This year's 15 contestants have collectively accumulated 21 Emmys, eight Peabodys, four Pulitzer Prizes and a Grammy Award, in addition to...
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Jeff Daniels
Jeff Daniels is nearing a deal to star in Aaron Sorkin's HBO pilot set at a cable news show, The Hollywood Reporter reports.
Daniels, 56, would play Will McCallister, the host of his own cable news show. The project goes behind the scenes of the show, following him, his...
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President of the World: The Bill Clinton Phenomenon
On Presidents' Day, Hardball host Chris Matthews will look at the 10 years that have passed since William Jefferson Clinton left the White House. Matthews' documentary, President of the World: The Bill Clinton Phenomenon (Monday at 10/9c on MSNBC) explores the former commander-in-chief's many recent roles, including humanitarian, political spouse and diplomat who helped in the release of two journalist imprisoned by North Korea. The Biz recently chatted with Matthews about why we seem to love Bubba more than ever.
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Aaron Sorkin
HBO has given a pilot order to Aaron Sorkin's new drama, Deadline reports.
Written by The Social Network scribe, the series will focus on...
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Chris Matthews
Chris Matthews might be on the move from MSNBC to D.C., should he decide to run for one of Pennsylvania's seats in the United States Senate.
The Patriot-News of Harrisburg, reports that the Hardball host and Philadelphia native has met with Democratic Party officials to discuss challenging Republican Sen. Arlen Specter in 2010.
Pennsylvania Democratic Party executive director Mary Isenhour's take-away from the confab was that Matthews ...
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Chris Matthews and Keith Olbermann courtesy MSNBC
Jeers to MSNBC for keeping Keith Olbermann and Chris Matthews too far from the action at the Democratic National Convention. The cable network placed their two primary anchors on an outdoor platform that looked a mile away from the Pepsi Center. The distance, isolation and wind wreaked havoc on Olbermann and Matthews' hair — and possibly on their minds. The Hardball blowhard forgot Joe Biden's name at one point, and if the Countdown bloviator is supposed to leave his subjectivity at the door on nights like this, somebody should tell him not to follow Hillary Clinton's speech with cries of "Grand slam! Grand slam! Grand slam!" (Maybe he was having an ESPN flashback.) It all made me miss Tim Russert even more.
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Anderson Cooper courtesy CNN, Harry Smith by John Filo/CBS, Diane Sawyer by Ida Mae Astute/ABC
If Katie Couric does leave the CBS Evening News anchor chair, here are the leading candidates to replace her and what they bring to the table.
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In another case of confusing those pesky consonants S and B, an NBC employee mistakenly flashed a picture of Osama bin Laden on the screen as MSNBC host Chris Matthews talked about presidential candidate Barack Obama. NBC spokesman Jeremy Gaines said, "This mistake was inexcusable." The photo mix-up came during Hardball on Monday, as Matthews teased a segment on the controversy over Obama's use of another politician's words in a speech. A picture of the al Qaeda leader flashed for a moment with the text, "Words About Words."Obama's campaign complained immediately, Matthews apologized moments later and in the rerun episode, the photo was corrected. The network did not disclose the name of the photo-swapping culprit, nor discussed what, if any, consequences the individual is facing. The Obama campaign, meanwhile, has seen this S and B error before, and has already garnered a similar apology from CNN. There was no comment from the Bin Laden camp. — Anna Dimond
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Chris Matthews by Lisa Berg/NBC
Chris Matthews recently celebrated his 10th year as the host of MSNBC's Hardball, and he spent a few decades in politics before that tenure. He's distilled his observations into a new Random House book, Life's a Campaign: What Politics Has Taught Me About Friendship, Rivalry, Reputation and Success. Ah, but can politics teach you how to handle Daily Show host Jon Stewart when he calls your book "sad," as he did when Matthews recently appeared to get a plug? Matthews tells The Biz how he survived what he called "the worst interview I've ever had in my life."TVGuide.com: What made you think your experience in politics would make a good advice book?Chris Matthews: It's what I know. You write what you know. I've spent 36 years watching politicians, and I've learned the traits that work with people. The absence of those traits usually suggests the failure of a career. I'm talking about people who get elected time and time again and succeed in American politics: Generally they have a set ...
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Keith Olbermann
War hasn't been hell for Keith Olbermann. As President Bush's poll ratings have declined in response to his handling of the Iraq situation, the ratings for Olbermann's nightly MSNBC newscast Countdown have shot up. The irreverent anchor recently signed on to front the cable news channel's most-watched show for another four years. NBC News sweetened the pot by giving him occasional essays on NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams and two prime time specials each year on the big network. The Biz asked Olbermann to reflect on his recent success and his new deal.
TVGuide.com: Countdown's ratings have built a lot over the year. Do you think it had something to with MSNBC finally sticking with a show for more than a few months
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