The Worst Person in the World: And 202 Strong Contenders (Hardcover)

by Keith Olbermann (Author)
Key Phrases: New York, Bill O'Reilly, Fox News (more...)

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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."

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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.
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Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Wiley (September 11, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470044950
• ISBN-13: 978-0470044957
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (147 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #357,205 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

54 of 66 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An entertaining romp of a read, September 25, 2006

By	seventypercent (Sioux Falls, SD USA) - See all my reviews

It must be said of Keith Olbermann's new book that there is a dearth of new material here; most of its 267 pages consist of verbatim transcripts of his on-air Worst Person in the World Countdown segment from July 1, 2005 to June 1, 2006. Still, if you're like me, WPITW is my favorite part of the program, and it's a genuine treat to have (nearly) a year's worth of them gathered into one convenient tome. In many ways, Olbermann's book serves as a time capsule for the year that was; reading through each day's list of nominees is a journey that visits all of the year's major news stories and some that were not so major (such as the story of the New Hampshire woman who sued her doctor because he informed her that she was obese.)

In addition to the daily list of nominees presented on Countdown, the book also includes several extended "Honorary Nominees" (generally about two or three per month) that explore in more detail issues of the day, ranging from sports, politics, stupid criminals, and everything in between. While Olbermann has become known of late for his social and political commentary, it must be said that the majority of the anecdotes in this book are apolitical in nature, focusing instead on human stupidity in the more general sense. That having been said, this book is not likely to gather a huge following among political conservatives.

I genuinely enjoyed this book and would imagine that anybody who enjoys Keith's signature wit and erudition will as well. Hopefully, he'll follow it up with future volumes; after all, there are plenty of other post-June Worst Persons in the World that deserve to be permanently immortalized!

56 of 71 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Keith puts the biscuit in the basket from waaay downtown...BANG!, September 15, 2006

By	cindyinthewind (Cleveland, OH USA) - See all my reviews

I began watching Keith Olbermann's show when the 2004 election was looming and I was in desperate need of a news program to watch that wasn't aimed at a person with a fifth-grade education and wasn't full of pro-White House spin. Enter Keith Olbermann: a man whom I vaguely recalled as having been a sportscaster sometime in his past, who turned out to be my savior. A man who could take the news, cut the crap and propaganda out of it, and dish it up with a side of snark when warranted and full, utter seriousness when required...and always knew the difference between the two. A man who was no more afraid to toss aside the Republican talking-points script than he was to toss his own script into the air at the end of his Top Three Newsmakers segment. Or to just ball them up and throw them at the camera, like he did the sheet of paper at the end of his show. Then there was the night he actually went into full Howard Beale mode, trenchcoat and all...Yes, this is MY idea of a news anchor!! A guy who believes in the ideals of journalism, yet still knows how to have fun.

I'm so glad that now he's come out with this book. There's not much here that he didn't either air during the past year on the show, post as a blog to the MSNBC Web site, or both, but that hardly matters. Rereading it all and having it between two covers is still a pleasure and I still laughed afresh at some of the "choices." My only disappointment is that one of his best commentaries of all, the post-Katrina "The 'City' of Louisiana," is missing.

This book comes highly recommended both to Keith's old fans, who will enjoy finally having a bound hard copy of his wit and wisdom, to the new ones he's now developing after his brilliant retort to Donald Rumsfeld and his 9/11 commentary...proof that while he may have been on the cutting edge to begin with, he's finding his audience amongst people who think like he does. Who have a vision of America that's based on the Declaration and the Constitution--not on the Project for a New American Century.

Here's hoping we see many more books out of Keith--and not just "The Worst Person in the World II," either.

42 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Keith in my pocket, September 14, 2006

By	K. Kangas - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I bought this book for my teenaged son who just loves Keith's worst lists, but I'm reading it myself before I give it to him to enjoy them all again. Great read!