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UPDATE: Keith Olbermann & Current TV Confirm Settlement In $50M Lawsuit

By DOMINIC PATTEN | Wednesday March 13, 2013 @ 4:54pm PDTTags: Big Deals TV, Current TV, Keith Olbermann

UPDATE, 4:54PM: A day after a deal was reach in Keith Olbermann’s $50 million lawsuit against Current TV, the former TV host and his former employer have issued a short joint statement officially confirming the settlement:

“The parties are pleased to announce that a settlement has occurred, and that the terms are confidential. Nothing more will be disclosed regarding the settlement.”

PREVIOUSLY, TUESDAY PM: Looks like Bay Area mediation worked where LA litigation could not for Keith Olbermann in his $50 million lawsuit against Current TV. A daylong session in San Francisco at the offices of Antonio Piazza of Mediation Negotiations has led to a settlement between the parties. While specifics of the agreement are confidential, a source tells Deadline that Olbermann is set to receive a significant payout from Current. The former ESPN and MSNBC anchor’s deal also means it won’t impact the Al Gore co-founded Current’s recent $500 million sale to Al Jazeera. Late last week, in heavily redacted court documents filed under seal in LA Superior Court, the former Countdown frontman requested an April 24 hearing for a summary judgment to rule in his favor over Current.

Related: Olbermann On His Current TV Gig: “I Screwed Up Big Time”

Olbermann sued his former employer for breach of contact and other claims on April 5, 2012 for the full multimillion-dollar sum of his five-year contract, this after Current fired Olbermann that March after less than a year at the network. On April 6, Current filed a cross complaint claiming it had “every right to terminate Mr. Olbermann’s services.” Both parties are expected to file documents relatively soon to dismiss the case. READ MORE »

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Al Gore Squares Off With Walt Mossberg On Sale Of Current TV To Al Jazeera

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Sunday March 10, 2013 @ 1:09pm PDTTags: Al Gore, Al Jazeera, Current TV, SXSW, Walt Mossberg

Things got a little too warm when Al Gore took to the stage at the SXSW Interactive festival Saturday to talk about The Future — that is, his new book subtitled Six Drivers Of Global Change as well as … Read More »

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Keith Olbermann Slams Current TV Again In Latest Legal Move

By DOMINIC PATTEN | Friday March 8, 2013 @ 9:21pm PSTTags: Current TV, Keith Olbermann, Lawsuit

The ongoing sideshow that is Keith Olbermann and his employment woes just continues. Within days before a high level mediation meeting in San Francisco, the one-time TV host is now seeking a summary judgment in his $50 million lawsuit against Current TV (now being sold to Al Jazeera). In heavily redacted court documents (read them here) filed under seal in LA Superior Court on Thursday the former Countdown frontman wants an April 24 hearing to rule in his favor over his former employers. The documents filed this week are Olbermann’s evidence why the court should rule for him. While most of the document is blanked out, the introduction to the 25-page filing gives a pretty good sense of where the former talking head is coming from:

Current breached 16(a)(i) of the Agreement by making disparaging and derogatory statements in the public and to its staff about Mr. Olbermann and by disclosing confidential terms of the parties’ Agreement to the press. Current breached 2(a)(ii) of the Agreement by using Mr. Olbermann’s likeness in connection with advertising the Program properties, all without his prior approval. Current breached 5(c) by using Olbermann’s name, without his approval, in connection with a commercial for AT&T. Current breached 2(a) and 2(b)(ii) by denying Mr. Olbermann editorial control over “Program Specials” broadcast on Current, and breached 2(a)(i) by refusing Mr. Olbermann editorial control of the website when it denied his request to stream segments of Countdown over the Website. Current breached 13(d) of the agreement by improperly terminating Mr. Olbermann’s employment.

 

Olbermann and his lawyers are scheduled to meet with Current TV executives on March 12 at the offices of Antonio Piazza of Mediation Negotiations in San Francisco. Former Vice-President and Current co-founder Al Gore and Current president David Bohrman are expected to attend.

Related:
Al Jazeera Paid $500M For Current TV
Keith Olbermann Talks To David Letterman About His Current TV Gig: “I Screwed Up Big Time”
Read More »

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Al Gore Denies Hypocrisy In Current TV Sale To Al Jazeera: Video

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Tuesday January 29, 2013 @ 2:10pm PSTTags: Al Gore, Al Jazeera, Current TV, Today

Al Gore defended his sale of Current TV to Al Jazeera in an appearance this morning on Today, saying he was forced to sell because of tough competition from conglomerates. He also denied any hypocrisy in the $500 million sale to Qatar-based Al Jazeera, which is … Read More »

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Deadline Big Media With David Lieberman, Episode 17

By DAVID LIEBERMAN, Executive Editor | Friday January 4, 2013 @ 4:52pm PSTTags: Al Jazeera, Current TV, Deadline Big Media

Here’s episode 17 of our audio podcast Deadline Big Media With David Lieberman. This week, Deadline Executive Editor Lieberman and host David Bloom discuss the impacts of an important tax provision for Hollywood passed as part of this week’s fiscal cliff bill; what happens with Al Jazeera’s purchase of Current TV, especially after Time-Warner Cable dropped the channel; and a look at some of the big trends at next week’s Consumer Electronics Show, which Lieberman will be covering and for which he’ll host a panel on streaming TV.

Deadline Big Media Episode 17 (MP3 format)
Deadline Big Media Episode 17 (MP4A format) Read More »

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Al Jazeera Paid $500M For Current TV: Bloomberg

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Thursday January 3, 2013 @ 6:42pm PSTTags: Al Jazeera, Big Deals TV, Current TV

Al JazeeraCurrent TV was sold to Al Jazeera for about $500 million, two people with knowledge of the deal told Bloomberg. Gore and partners paid about $71 million in 2004 for the channel that became Current … Read More »

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Will Time Warner Cable Carry Al Jazeera America? It Depends

By DAVID LIEBERMAN, Executive Editor | Thursday January 3, 2013 @ 2:58pm PSTTags: Al Jazeera, Current TV, Time Warner Cable

All eyes will be on the No. 2 cable company’s response to the channel that Al Jazeera plans to create from what’s left of Current TV: It could determine whether the Qatar-based news company’s surprising deal yesterday … Read More »

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UPDATE: Al Jazeera Buys Current TV, But It Won’t Be On Time Warner Cable

By DAVID LIEBERMAN, Executive Editor | Wednesday January 2, 2013 @ 4:00pm PSTTags: Al Gore, Al Jazeera, Big Deals TV, Current TV, Time Warner Cable

UPDATE, 4 PM: Current TV CEO Joel Hyatt just confirmed the sale in a memo to staffers. “Getting this transaction done was very difficult,” he writes. (Read the network’s official statement after the original break of the story.) Since Time Warner Cable would not consent to the sale “Current will no longer be carried on TWC. This is unfortunate, but I am confident that Al Jazeera America will earn significant additional carriage in the months and years ahead.” Time Warner Cable says that it is “removing the service as quickly as possible.” The loss of the No. 2 cable operator will hurt: Time Warner Cable has 12.2M video subscribers and Current reaches about 59M homes. Others also could follow Time Warner Cable’s lead as they look to prune their often bloated channel lineups. Al Jazeera has fought an uphill battle to win carriage on U.S. cable systems. Operators say it’s too expensive, and that there’s too little interest in the subjects it covers. Fans of the channel say it’s due to unreasonable fears that Al Jazeera’s content will be too controversial and possibly propagandistic. Al Jazeera fought back, and further infuriated cable execs, by live-streaming its English-language programming. Read More »

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Current TV Considers Sale, Other Options

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Friday October 26, 2012 @ 5:25pm PDTTags: Current TV

Current TV is considering putting itself up for sale after potential buyers approached, company CEO Joel Hyatt said in an e-mail today. “This year alone, we have had three inquiries. As a consequence, we thought it might be useful to … Read More »

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Current TV Launching Two Series From John Fugelsang

By DOMINIC PATTEN | Monday October 1, 2012 @ 12:19pm PDTTags: Al Gore, Current TV

The channel co-founded by Al Gore said it is launching the week-in-review show John Fugelsang: So That Happened on Friday at 6 PM. And Fugelsang tweeted today that his as-yet-unnamed nightly primetime series will debut on … Read More »

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Al Gore Leads Current TV Debate Coverage

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Wednesday September 26, 2012 @ 12:34pm PDTTags: Al Gore, Current TV

He used to be in the debates and now he’s reporting on them. Al Gore will anchor Current TV’s coverage of the first debate between President Obama and Mitt Romney on October 3 in Denver. The … Read More »

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Dish Network Enlists Glenn Beck And Eliot Spitzer To Debate Political Views

By DAVID LIEBERMAN, Executive Editor | Thursday September 13, 2012 @ 1:25pm PDTTags: Current TV, Eliot Spitzer, Glenn Beck

It doesn’t look like Dish Network is using Charlie Rose, C-SPAN, or Firing Line as models for the program it will air on October 2, the night before the first presidential debate. The satellite company calls its special … Read More »

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Al Gore To Host Current TV’s Convention Coverage

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Wednesday August 8, 2012 @ 1:47pm PDTTags: 2012 Presidential Race, Al Gore, Current TV

Al Gore once stood on the podium accepting the Democratic Party’s nominations for both Vice-President and President. This year, the former VP will be up in the skybox reporting on both the DNC and the RNC for Current TV. The channel Gore co-founded made the announcement today:

New York, NY, August 8, 2012 – Vice President Al Gore will be leading Current TV’s coverage of the Republican and Democratic National Conventions.  Coverage of the Republican National Convention (RNC) begins August 27th from 7pm – 11pm EST and will continue for all four nights, concluding on August 30th. Coverage of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) begins on September 4th from 7pm – 11pm EST and will conclude on September 6th. Vice President Gore will be joined by former Michigan Governor and “The War Room” host, Jennifer Granholm, former New York Governor and “Viewpoint” host, Eliot Spitzer and “The Young Turks” host, Cenk Uygur.  Additionally, California Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom will join the panel for the RNC coverage.

Current TV will feature reporting with real-time analysis and detailed coverage of the 2012 conventions.  David Shuster and Michael Shure will report from both conventions.  Also contributing will be new Current TV hosts Joy Behar and John Fugelsang. “I’m pleased to be participating in Current TV’s impressive line-up throughout the Republican and Democratic National Conventions,” said Vice President Al Gore. “Cenk, Jennifer and Eliot provide the keen insight and spot-on analysis our viewers have come to expect, combined with decades of experience in public service and a deep understanding of politics. I have no doubt that our coverage will be innovative and informative, and I look forward to working with them.”

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Current TV President On Olbermann, Thoughts On ‘The Newsroom’: TCA

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Wednesday August 1, 2012 @ 11:07am PDTTags: Current TV, Keith Olbermann, TCA

Ray Richmond contributes to Deadline’s TV coverage.

The liberal cable stronghold Current TV hosted a breakfast this morning at TCA complete with its very own on-site radio show. The syndicated Stephanie Miller Show was broadcast in the background and simulcast live on Current, as it is every weekday. In fact, the network has ramped up its homegrown live programming significantly since the beginning of the year after losing its signature primetime show hosted by Keith Olbermann (who departed at the end of March in an acrimonious huff, followed in April by the inevitable multi-pronged lawsuit over his termination). The Olbermann situation “is going to be in litigation for the rest of my life,” said Current president David Bohrman with only a trace of exaggeration. But he was wistful about the lingering impact that Olbermann had on the network. “It’s unfortunate (how things ended),” he said, “but Keith was transformative in that when we put his program on, it really showed (Current partners) Joel (Hyatt) and Al (Gore) what we should be doing. And to that end, it was critical. It helped set us on the right path”.

Related: Current TV To Launch Primetime Show Hosted By Comedian John Fugelsang Read More »

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Joy Behar To Host Show On Current TV

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Monday June 11, 2012 @ 7:11am PDTTags: Current TV, Joy Behar
Nellie Andreeva

UPDATED: The View co-host Joy Behar will be launching a daily show on Current TV. The program, tentatively titled The Joy Behar Show, will premiere in September and air Monday through Thursday at 6 PM with rebroadcasts later in the evening in primetime. Featuring a regular rotating ensemble of journalists, analysts and political satirists, the program will focus on political events, social issues and pop culture topics.

Veteran comedian Behar will make her debut on the cable channel next week when she will take over for Eliot Spitzer while he is on vacation. She will not be guest hosting his Viewpoint but will be hosting her own show in the time period once occupied by Keith Olbermann. Titled Joy Behar: One Week Only *Until the Fall, the program will air Monday through Friday that week at 8 PM ET and offer a taste of Behar’s upcoming nightly show — featuring conversations with a mix of journalists, newsmakers and celebrities. Behar said her show on Current TV will be similar to her The Joy Behar Show, which she anchored on HLN for two years. “There will be a lot more politics because I’m interested in politics, and they had a different focus at HLN,” Behar said, adding that, in addition to being as political as she is, Current TV also shares her progressive views. She said that he is excited about working with Current TV chairman and former Vice President Al Gore “who didn’t lose the (2000 presidential) election; they just decided that he lost the election.”

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Gavin Newsom Lands Current TV Show

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Wednesday April 18, 2012 @ 10:08am PDTTags: Al Gore, Current TV, Keith Olbermann

Gavin Newsom Current TVCurrent California Lieutenant Governor and longtime liberal talking head Gavin Newsom has landed his own show on Current TV. The former San Francisco mayor, who briefly ran for California governor in 2009, will host the weekly … Read More »

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Right-Wing Fueled By Olbermann Vs Gore Feud: But Real Loser Is Liberal Current TV

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Monday April 9, 2012 @ 5:52am PDTTags: Current TV, Keith Olbermann

Conservative media are immensely enjoying the legal combat which erupted last week between Keith Olbermann and Al Gore’s Current TV cable network. The lawsuits and countersuits have prompted headlines like “Epic Ego Fail” to describe Olbermann. But Gore, too, is coming in for ridicule as shown by the Internet illustrations above. “Would anyone like some popcorn as two of the biggest meatheads in cable news duke it out?” wrote Breitbart.com. “One behaves as though he invented broadcasting, the other claims he invented the Internet.” Still another right-wing article hypes the battle between Gore and “favorite lefty TV spokesboor” Olbermann, even claiming the day Olbermann sued the employer (April 5th) ”will henceforth be known among conservatives as ‘National Schadenfreude Day’. … Keith is dissing Al as a goof, which makes Keith what kind of doof for being suckered by him?” For that matter, what kind of dork goes on Letterman and describes himself as “a $10 million chandelier” while detailing what is basically a run-of-the-mill employment dispute. Which prompted the right-wing Washington Times to snark in a headline: “Yes, Olbermann is like a $10 million chandelier: Fragile and vastly overpriced.” Even more to the point, Olbermann’s $70 million lawsuit and Current’s countersuit over his $50 million TV contract confirms conservatives’ worst stereotypes about the left-wing media. It turns out they really are limousine liberals: among examples of Olbermann’s misbehavior, Current cites more than $50,000 spent among 8 limousine companies. And so on.

Much to the glee of the GOP, the legal battle also lays bare the dysfunction inside Current TV run by the former Democraic Vice President Al Gore and his longtime pal Joel Hyatt, who was 2000′s National Finance Chair for the Democratic Party. Liberals wondering why the channel doesn’t get more audience traction only need to read Olbermann’s legal complaint for the answers. Read More »

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Keith Olbermann Sues Current TV Over His Firing, Alleged Mismanagement By Current

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Thursday April 5, 2012 @ 3:51pm PDTTags: Current TV

Keith Olbermann has sued Current TV over his firing from the cable network as anticipated, outlining a litany of complaints about actions taken by Current almost immediately after Olbermann came aboard after leaving MSNBC. The suit, which you can … Read More »

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UPDATE: Keith Olbermann Vows To Sue Current For “Improper” Termination

By DAVID LIEBERMAN, Executive Editor | Friday March 30, 2012 @ 2:14pm PDTTags: Current TV, Keith Olbermann

UPDATE, 2:45 PM: Olbermann’s fighting back: “Keith’s termination is baseless,” his lawyer Patricia Glaser says. “We will sue them for their improper conduct. They made a bad decision. They can expect a bad result.” And here’s Olbermann’s statement, an apology to viewers for joining Current which he says was a “sincere and well-intentioned gesture on my part, but in retrospect a foolish one”:

I’d like to apologize to my viewers and my staff for the failure of Current TV.

Editorially, Countdown had never been better. But for more than a year I have been imploring Al Gore and Joel Hyatt to resolve our issues internally, while I’ve been not publicizing my complaints, and keeping the show alive for the sake of its loyal viewers and even more loyal staff.  Nevertheless, Mr. Gore and Mr. Hyatt, instead of abiding by their promises and obligations and investing in a quality news program, finally thought it was more economical to try to get out of my contract.

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