Keith Olbermann Leaves MSNBC

Cable news shocker: MSNBC's fiery liberal pundit Keith Olbermann abruptly announced at the end of his Friday edition of Countdown that the show was ending, surprising viewers and perhaps even some at his own network, which was still running promos for Countdown after Olbermann's signoff. Olbermann said he just learned Friday that his show was over, and hinted that the departure wasn't voluntary. He still had two years left on his contract, and survived a recent high-profile clash with NBC brass over his campaign donations to Democrats. One hint about what could have been behind his sudden signoff: It came just as the government approved Comcast's takeover of the majority share of NBC Universal, and, while Comcast denied it wanted him out because of his politics, Olbermann was expected to cross the company's new bosses at some point.