Olbermann Debut Loses to MSNBC, Beats CNN

Keith Olbermann's new Countdown debut didn’t exactly come with a ratings blastoff. Current TV hasn’t announced the complete numbers for Monday's show, but it said the program managed 179,000 viewers in the all-important 25-to-54 demographic advertisers crave. Current is happy with the rating, but Mediaite notes that it’s a fair step below the 237,000 Lawrence O’Donnell scored in Olbermann’s old slot on MSNBC.

The rating also put Olbermann behind Fox News and Nancy Grace’s show on HLN. He beat out CNN’s In the Arena, but host Eliot Spitzer is on vacation this week. It’s not inconceivable that ratings could go up, but it is unlikely—most shows see ratings fall off after their debut, as curious samplers lose interest. Still, given that Current isn't exactly a household brand, the Hollywood Reporter sees it as a "solid start." (More Keith Olbermann stories.)