The Worst Person in the World: And 202 Strong Contenders [Hardcover]

Keith Olbermann (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 11, 2006

All of the failings and missteps of celebrities, politicians, and a few just-plain-dumb folks, as seen on MSNBC's Countdown with Keith Olbermann

Keith Olbermann is more popular than ever, and ratings for Countdown are up 85 percent over the last year. A key feature of the program is his daily award for "The Worst Person in the World." From Ann Coulter and Barbara Bush to Bill O’Reilly and more, he brings the best of his "worsts" together in a wildly entertaining collection that reveals just how twisted people can be–and how much fun it is to call them out on it.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Amazon.com Exclusive Video

The stinkers, the rascals, the reprobates. . . and the just plain dumb.

(Yes, Bill, he's talking about you.)

Geraldo Rivera. The Coca-Cola Company. Victoria Gotti. Tom Cruise. Various members of the Bush administration. All have earned the dishonor of "Worst Person in the World," awarded by MSNBC's witty and controversial reporter Keith Olbermann on his nightly MSNBC show Countdown with Keith Olbermann.

Now, he brings all his bronze, silver, and gold medalists together in this wildly entertaining collection that reveals just how twisted people can be—and how much fun it is to call them out on it.

From tongue-in-cheek observations to truly horrific accounts, Olbermann skewers both the mighty and the meek, the well-known and the anonymous for their misdeeds, including:

Ann Coulter, for, among other things, calling Muslims "ragheads" in a speech to the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington

Barbara Bush, for making a generous donation to the Hurricane Katrina Relief Fund earmarked exclusively for the purchase of computer software . . . software sold by her son, Neil

The staff of Your World with Neil Cavuto, for the story about the murders of Iraqi civilians that was accompanied by the on-screen graphic: "All-out Civil War in Iraq: Could It Be a Good Thing?"

Olbermann also reports on some of the recent fallout from his awards, such as the controversy with John Gibson and the mysterious disappearance of remarks about Cindy Sheehan on Rush Limbaugh's Web site. Plus, he reveals the winner of the most coveted award of all: "Worst in Show."

---

From Publishers Weekly

For his first book as a newsman, the smart, sarcastic host of MSNBC's nightly newsmagazine program Countdown with Keith Olbermann has compiled nearly one years' worth of his wickedly righteous Worst Person in the World feature. Of course, when he says "worst," Olbermann isn't talking about Hitler; these specimens-including Tom Cruise, OJ Simpson and Ann Coulter-are "the mortal enemies of honesty and dignity, of selflessness and class." Though the peppery host often pillories the merely stupid or ridiculous behavior of regular Americans and celebrities, the recurring theme is corporate, political and media malfeasance of every stripe. FEMA, the Department of Homeland Security, school boards around the country, Rush Limbaugh and George Bush all make multiple appearances. But the real star of the book-not counting Olbermann himself-is his ratings rival Bill O'Reilly (their shows air at the same time), who gets taken to task again and again. Depending on your politics, you're either going to love or hate the fierce, progressive Olbermann, and his printed rants aren't nearly as cathartic as they are when delivered in his confident, mocking boom, but this collection makes a fine book for flipping.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (September 11, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470044950
• ISBN-13: 978-0470044957
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (150 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #712,920 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

KEITH OLBERMANN has won three Edward R. Murrow Awards for Writing, the first for his coverage of 9/11, the second for its anniversary commemorations a year later, and the third in 2010 for his tribute to his mother, "A Baseball Fan Named Marie." Now the host of MSNBC's Coundown, he was previously the coanchor of ESPN's SportsCenter from 1992 to 1997 and helped launch ESPN2 and the ESPN Radio Network. He has hosted prime-time news programs, moderated a Democratic presidential debate, anchored two World Series and one Super Bowl, and won a Cable Ace and 11 Golden Mikes, while his shows have won four Sports Emmys. He has written for dozens of publications, including the New York Times, Newsweek, Time, and Sports Illustrated. He is the author of The Worst Person in the World: And 202 Other Contenders, Truth and Consequences, and other books.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

57 of 73 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars No "moral or intellectual confusion" here..., September 20, 2006

By 

Matthew Haag "mattsmind" (Lebanon, PA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Worst Person in the World: And 202 Strong Contenders (Hardcover)

As I read through "Worst Person In The World", I was reminded that Olbermann could have indeed taken the Bill O'Reilly-route and written a book on politics, values, or the ever popular and overexposed "culture wars". Olbermann's perceptive on-air commentaries in recent weeks on Rumsfeld and 9/11 indeed prove he would be quite adept at this. However, as one reviewer here previously noted (and rightly so) there are enough of these types of books. The world doesn't need another. Instead, Olbermann smartly chose to treat us to a little humor in noting some absolutely twisted and foolish individuals. The result is a book that comes across as apolitical more often than political.

If you are a viewer of "Countdown", much of this material will be familiar as it is largely transcripts of what was presented on the broadcasts. However, Olbermann's concise and witty use of the language, even repeated in a printed format, is still informative and necessary. Aspects of the book where Olbermann highlights nominees for astounding failures in the wake of Hurricane Katrina speak largely to this point. Over a year on, many of these failures have not been refuted and some of them will truly make your head spin. At times, his observations are also wildly entertaining. Be on the lookout for my personal favorite: the government agency that posted signs for a suicide hotline with the wrong phone number. Oops!

Then there's Malmedy. Included in the epilogue of this book is a commentary by Olbermann where he takes issue with Bill O'Reilly's characterization of the Malmedy massacre of World War II. For those of you who don't know this story, it goes something like this. On his show, O'Reilly was defending the conduct of American soldiers accused of atrocities at Haditha in Iraq, and did so by mentioning atrocities committed by American soldiers in Malmedy in 1944. Problem is American soldiers didn't commit atrocities in Malmedy; German Nazi soldiers did. American soldiers were taken prisoner and 84 of them were gunned down in a field by the Germans. When Olbermann mentioned O'Reilly's mix up on "Countdown", I decided to do my own research on this. I couldn't believe O'Reilly could be THIS wrong! A quick Yahoo search of Malmedy and Michael Reynolds, the author cited by Olbermann, quickly turned up the primary article that Olbermann used from "World War II" magazine in October 2003. Several other history-related websites corroborated the same information and Olbermann's summary of the article is spot-on. If you can still rationalize O'Reilly and what he says after reading what Olbermann relates in this epilogue, you better start brushing up on what the meaning of the word "is" is. I think you will need it soon.

Hopefully, MSNBC and other networks will have the graciousness to continue giving broadcasters like Olbermann a place on the dial. There is an audience for Olbermann; they just haven't all found him yet! Hopefully, this book might change that. Buy this book and see if you won't want to join us after you've read it.

47 of 60 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining and insightful, September 25, 2006

By 

Alexander E. Paulsen "AlexP" (Jacksonville, Fl United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Worst Person in the World: And 202 Strong Contenders (Hardcover)

This is a collection of my favorite spot on Countdown with Keith Olbermann, "The Worst Person in the World." from the past 2 years or so.

As Olbermnn points out, many of the people here are far from being really the worst with the possible exception of Billo who may very be that elusive WPINTW for all time.

The nominees however all have worked hard to at least win their space for that day and enjoy their 15 minutes of fame as the Worse Person in the World if not for always but at least for now.

Unfortunately no book can really do justice to Olbermanns presentation. His wit and timing make the real segment seen on video much funnier than this written version. It will however still crack a smile, a giggle or a belly laugh.

I was reading this in the doctors office and for some reason the segments with a few Billo and Rush awards it had me in stitches. Several other patients waiting asked me what I was reading. It is too bad that my cable service does NOT carry MSNBC, but I'm about ready to buy a dish just so I can see Countdown every night. Until then there is always You Tube and the podcast.

This book is funny but nowhere near as enjoyable and entertaining as hearing Keith give the awards himself.

Obermann in my opinion is 100 times better to watch than John Stewart. Stewart too often just subsitutes funny faces for wit and wisdom. Just watch Keith one time say "Oh Bill made a funny."

Now where is that falafel?

56 of 72 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Keith Olbermann - a real American hero, September 14, 2006

By 

M. Czerniewski (Kansas City) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Worst Person in the World: And 202 Strong Contenders (Hardcover)

In the past year, Keith Olbermann - already considered a "god" among sports fans - has become a hero to the progressives of this country. His willingness, especially in recent weeks, to call out the Bush Administration and his constant naming of conservatives to his Worst Persons list - like Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter-"geist", and "Falafel Boy" Bill O'Reilly - as well as his willingness to do actual news have made Olbermann the most underrated journalist in our time.

This book, while it is mostly a compilation of his Worst Persons segments in the last year, calls people out in a humorous manner, which is not typical of the news. He does, however, let other aspects of his personality - such as the whole Yankee apologist thing - slip (nominating Bubba Crosby for the Yankees' losing a playoff series with the Angels, or his honorary naming of the Boston Red Sox - although that was for the whole Mientkiewicz ball incident).

I strongly suggest this book, in concert with the works of another O'Reilly favorite, Al Franken.